Freedom of Speech? What's That?

Bon soir, mes amis! It's a beautiful, cool evening here at the cabin. Aggie's lain at my feet and I'm watching Ben Stein's "Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed". Have you seen it? Ben Stein produced and directed this documentary exposing and exploring the lack of academic freedom in secondary education, particularly in the science classroom.

Did you know that many different Molecular and Cellular Biology, Astronomy, Physics, and even Neurology Professors from American Universities have been disciplined by their superiors for simply mentioning the possibility that Darwin's theories regarding the origin of life may lack sufficient evidence? I show this film to my students every semester and they write a response that reveals how shocked they are to find out about the science 'sin' of teaching anything besides evolution.

One professor that Stein interviews was fired from George Mason University because on the first day of class, she showed her students a slideshow previewing the class material. One slide showed the textbook definition of neo-Darwinism versus the textbook definition of Intelligent Design. Apparently it made one of her students so upset that he or she ran straight to the Dean of her department and complained. Three days later, the professor was asked to vacate her office because they claimed she had taught Creationism.

Freedom of speech is something we Americans take for granted, but if my predictions are right, it will not be long before our freedom to teach, preach, show, or say anything that might point to our moral, ethical, and religious beliefs will be 'too offensive' for some. The Ten Commandments apparently have no place in American courthouses anymore as one or two of them just don't line up with American laws. We wouldn't want to force our children to have to say the word "God" so we let them skip the Pledge of Allegiance. And we certainly don't need any religious symbols like crosses to be displayed in public. What would people think? No 'Merry Christmas'. No 'God bless you'. No 'I'll be praying for you'. God help us stay strong in our faith and our boldness for Jesus Christ. Jesus said in Mark 8:38 that "If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels."

One day every single person who denies that Jesus is the Son of God in this life will open their eyes and behold Him, but it will be too late. For those of us who have asked Christ to take away our sins, we must continue to show Him boldly in this world of darkness and corruption. I know the risk I've taken every time I've showed "Expelled" to my classes. Yes, I've had students who disagreed with Ben Stein's thoughts on academic freedom and who have made their own opinions quite clear in class, but I won't let it keep me from warning my Freshmen students of what they will face in the next four years of their lives. I may not be able to give my own opinions in the classroom, but I will show the love of Christ. I hope you'll do the same at your school or at your work. Don't be afraid to share the love of God! If someone gets offended, it's their problem, not yours!

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a fantastic weekend. Go Dawgs!

Satan's Little Helpers

Greetings to all my Blogland buddies! I trust you had a wonderful weekend. I know I did; this weekend I left my smart dog, Aggie, in the faithful care of my brother and headed to Atlanta for the Women of Faith Conference. This was a new experience for me and for most of the lovely ladies that accompanied me to the ginormous Philips Arena to see speakers and Christian recording artists such as the absolutely adorable Patsy Clairmont.

If I could sum Patsy Clairmont up in one word, it would be 'hyperactive'. I think I lost five pounds just trying to keep up with her on stage! What a blessing, though, to see a woman who is old enough to throw in the towel, but who chooses to continue encouraging others through laughter and Biblical insights in a world full of darkness and hopelessness.

Another speaker who held my attention was Stephen Arterburn, the founder of Women of Faith ministries. Mr. Arterburn focused on how we as followers of Christ in a world that fears and even hates Christ often turn to revivals, conferences, or Christian concerts as a vacation from the real world, which, he was sure to add, is not a bad thing. We must be careful, however, to remember that the household to which we return after the concerts and conferences will not always know or care about the revival we have felt in our hearts. They will not be on the same spiritual high, if you will. Even our church family may be oblivious to the miraculous, life-changing experience we have encountered.

Stephen Arterburg summed up the uncomfortable, difficult situation that many Christians face after we've been on a mountaintop. "We've enjoyed a week or even a day in the presence of God almighty and we have renewed and refreshed our relationship to Jesus," he said, "and then we have to pack our things and drive back home to the real world. And we pull into the church parking lot and are immediately bombarded by Satan. Or, to be more precise, Satan's little helpers."

Who are Satan's little helpers? Well, your husband comes to pick you up and you're anxious to tell him about the wonderful worship and the thought-provoking speakers and how you want to become more involved in the church. But all he wants to talk about is how 'your son' threw a baseball through the bathroom window and how he had to settle for nose-bleed section season tickets because you forgot to leave the credit card with him before you left and how this will be the first time in thirteen years that he can't sit with Bob and Joe in the same section, same row as they did Senior year and how Bob and Joe will be devastated and how it's all your fault.

Maybe you arrive home to eight messages on your machine; two from your 'best friend' asking to borrow some cash again, one from an unknown woman stating that your late charges at the library are now in the four-digit range, three sales calls asking if you have credit card debt and promising a fail-proof solution, one from the boss saying "we need to talk," and one from your neighbor reminding you to shut up your dog at night or she's going to shut it up for you.

Or maybe you're the last to leave the church parking lot because your parents couldn't care less about where you've been or what you've learned and felt the past two days. So you sit on the curb next to your bags and wait for an hour or so. And when your dad finally shows up, you want to spill everything so badly, but you know it's in vain.

So your spirit begins to die down again, and all the stories told, all the laughter shared, all the tears shed, all of it seems to diminish and loose its power in your heart and mind. All because of Satan's little helpers in your life. You see, when you or I have experienced the power of Jesus Christ and have seen what his love can do in a single day or week, Satan will use whatever and whoever is closest to knock us back down as soon as possible. He knows how vulnerable we are when we open our hearts to hear what God is speaking to us. So he recruits those around us to dish out the punches left and right.

Now don't get me wrong. I don't believe husbands, wives, children, or friends intentionally dampen our spirits. Let's just be sensitive to one another and remember that God can touch each of us in a different way and at a different time. If a member of your church or family is passionate or excited about what the Lord has done in his or her life, who are we to rain on their parade? Who are we to smother the fire that God alone can give? How sad to know that you were the one who cut someone's personal revival short because you were having a bad day and needed someone to blame.

Well, sorry it's been doomy and gloomy, but that's what stuck with me the most this weekend. Next time will be happier, if God allows. I walked away from this wonderful experience with a fresh perspective on my priorities and my life goals and dreams. I was anxious to get back to my baby girl, though. We pulled into the driveway and there she was. My better half was waiting for me on the front porch. Old Faithful. Bon voyage, mes amis.

Learning to Follow

Hello virtual world. How nice of you to drop by! I've decided to try blogging, which, in the uber-exciting world of English academia, is considered treasonistic at best. May my colleagues forgive me.

I feel that I must needs go to Blogland and write a semi-daily account of my reckonings and my cipherings (as my lovely Pastor so elequently relates) in this race to the finish line. So, armed with my Life Application B-I-B-L-E, the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and my handy-dandy spell check, this dumb sheep is ready for battle. Oh, and Aggie is a great help too, but not right now because she's asleep at my bedside with her legs flailed in the air, paws twitching as she chases an imaginary who-knows-what.

They say everyone has been given a spiritual gift. Mine is black and white, weighs about 75 pounds, and lifts her paws together in the air to pray. Aggie is my better half until I meet my better half. She's an intense friend and follows me wherever I go, even to places where I would rather be left alone, if you get my drift.

This dumb sheep could learn a thing or two from her best friend. In fact, I think most Christians could learn a thing or two from man's best friend. Let's take what happened last Saturday, for example.

My brother and I took Aggie walking at the local high school. They have a great track circling the football field and both are fenced in completely. So I let Aggie off the leash and after about thirty minutes of running like there's no tomorrow, she found a spot of grass that was apparently more comfortable than the other acre and a half of grass and threw herself on the ground.

She would watch as I walked around the field, and as I approached her chosen spot, my little girl would run several yards ahead and throw herself down again in a new spot. She repeated this until I had walked several laps, never letting me get ahead of her. I could almost see a smirky grin on her face as she reveled in being off the leash and free to go wherever she pleased. Even then, she didn't stray far, but just far enough to stay out of my reach so that she could run away again when I got too close.

Sound familiar? Just like Aggie, we love the freedoms that this life offers. We love feeling like we're in control of life, and let's be honest, we love to stay just far enough ahead of God so that we can look back and make sure He's still there for us if we ever need Him, but not close enough to actually lead us or impact our daily lives.

Jesus only asked his disciples to lead others after they had spent three years learning to follow. I think this is one area of discipleship training that we have neglected. Learning to follow Christ goes against everything this world is telling us. We are bombarded with messages of individualism, self-preservation, materialistic success, and the importance of leadership. But Jesus said, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me" -Matthew 19:21. What a backwards concept: Forget the American dream. Give up the career that you've worked so long to secure. Sell your dream house. Get rid of your toys, your timeshare, your season tickets. Give me your plans, your retirement, your life, your children's lives.

And gain everything.

I don't know about you, but I'm going to work on my following skills. That includes my patience, my waiting on the Lord, my seeking His will for the little decisions, and my not being offended when Jesus leads me down a different road than I wanted to go. And while I'm working on these, Aggie and I will work on her shaking skills, which at this point are nonexistent.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you'll tune in next time for more adventures with a dumb sheep and a smart dog! Bon voyage, mes amis.