The Attack On Freedom

Freedom is not free.  Freedom comes with a price.  Living in a military town the immediate price that comes to mind is the price paid by those who place themselves in harms way to secure that freedom.  I am eternally grateful for their sacrifice.

Freedom comes with other price’s to be paid. For instance, my freedom of expression comes at the price of enduring someone else’s freedom of expression. Freedom of religion means that the price is others will practice religion in accordance with their beliefs.

This morning I picked up a facebook stream from my friend Jimmy Hagar regarding the President’s upcoming speech regarding gun control.  Jimmy made it clear that his comments were open and able to be shared.  I have chosen to share them in this manner because I want to highlight a dangerous precedent that could potentially be set in these next days.

*From Facebook:

Jimmy Hager

5 hours ago ·

            On the eve of the President's big speech on gun control at 11:45 tomorrow morning I want to make one last personal opinion statement about gun control. After this I'm only going to be posting statistics which can be verified by the court system.

           

            Here is a fact we in Columbia live with every single day of the year. Not a day goes by up here that somebody doesn't rob or kill somebody, or hold up some place of business using a stolen gun. And those are just the ones that either make the news or get reported to the authorities. But the news has at least one a day.

           

            Here's another fact some people will find very difficult to believe: Most violent crime in the Columbia area is vanity related. It's all about being a big shot, a tough guy, a gangster. Hang with me on this.

           

            Here is another fact. Nobody, not one soul, who robs a store, home, car, bank or holds up someone at gun point in a parking lot, rest area, or bank drive through or on a street, or walks into a bank with a gun, is committing these crimes because they need money to put food on a table or feed their hungry children or because they are on the verge of starving unless they rob you or somebody else. Not one, not a single solitary act of armed robbery in South Carolina over the last year has been proven to be or even linked to a "basic human need" related issue. Why? Because all that stuff is free for the asking. Not one person charged with a violent or gun related crime has claimed hunger or homelessness as a part of their defense. It is all vanity/

           

            When a person gets robbed in Columbia these days it is for one of only four reasons:

           

            1. So the robber can buy drugs, then go home, get high and play video games (which means he has to win the game to be considered cool in front of his friends) and they play until he runs out of dope or money or both, then they just go out and hit another home or car or store and do the same thing day in and day out or until they get caught. These are the juvenile idiots.

           

            Or 2. So they can dress up and go down to the strip club, and stroll into that club like gangsters and act like big shots while stylin' and profilin' and shooting off their mouths in a cheap polyester imitation of a copy of a shadow of their version of their favorite video role model. These are the ones between 18 and 27

           

            Or 3. If they are too old to be staying home playing video games, and have access to a car, they can take your money, or sell your belongings to get the money they need, so they can act cool enough and act bad enough in front of their friends, by flashing your money down to the nightclub, or over at the crib, so they might actually possibly get laid by some girl who is so impressed with the money they stole from you she just can't say no regardless of how ugly the dude is. This time. These are the ones who are between 25 and 35. The average age of an armed robber in South Carolina between 18 and 20.

           

            Or 4. They owe their supplier more money than they have on them because they spent too much acting cool and being a bad ass down to the club where the stripper hustled them out of that fat roll they were either too drunk or too high to keep up with and now they have come up with the cash or get whacked.

           

            That's it. Four vanity related reasons, account for 99.9% of all robberies in Columbia. Violent crime in our city happens everyday for one or more of those four reasons. You won't find these stats on any web site. You get these stats from talking to the public defenders and lawyers assigned to defend or prosecute them.

           

            I would love for someone out there to tell me I'm wrong, but I doubt very seriously anyone will. Because the evidence I've gathered in my study of this epidemic of radical street terror narcissism is everywhere. One need only look at the court records.

           

            So, if it's not too much trouble would some anti-gun advocate out there please tell me why I, as a senior citizen, who can no longer defend myself with my bare hands against the violent actions of these narcissist gangster hoodlum wannabes, why I am supposed to give up my personal gun, my only real defense against a gang of predominately 18+ year old males (there's very seldom only one and the average is three) who are armed to the teeth when they break in or try to rob someone, because even they, stupid and ignorant as they are, are not crazy enough to break into a house or try to rob someone unarmed, why should I be required to voluntarily disarm myself because some politicians (who are themselves protected by some of the most heavily armed people on the planet,) think we would all be safer if people like me were unarmed when everyone but these idiot gangsters,drug dealers and ignorant narcissistic fools have guns and nothing to lose by either killing me or beating me half to death.

           

            The number of elderly victims of violent crime in our area is on the rise yet again. Seniors in their 80's have been beaten senseless and even killed over a flat screen tv which was pawned for $200.

           

            Please tell me how my death at the hands of hoodlums like these will serve anything even remotely akin to a higher good. I really want to know how many of those who oppose guns would be willing to lay down their lives in the privacy of their own homes or see their children, grandchildren or parents or grandparents become victims of these scum for the sake of providing drug and stripper tip money to these poor, well fed souls who just can't seem to scrape together enough self esteem to go out and earn all the "ones" they need to stick in a g-string while high on blow, or tripping on X and shooting their mouths off while carrying an illegal loaded gun. Does anyone out there really think that "please take anything you want, just don't kill me," is a good defense? If so, why doesn't the President try going out without his security detail. Why heck, he just gave himself life time secret service protection. What is the Secret Service armed with? The latest edition of Miss Manners It's Impolite to Whisper at the Dinner Table? Is it really about curbing gun violence? Or is it really more about disarming as many law abiding citizens as possible so the gangsters can rule the streets? Does drug and tip money really sound like a cause worth dieing for?

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5 people like this.



           

            



Tamalyn Lee Is is okay to share this with "all"?
5 hours ago · Like






           

            



Jimmy Hager Share it with anyone you like. That's why I posted it.
5 hours ago · Like






           

            



Tamalyn Lee Great...thanks!
5 hours ago · Like






                                   

                        Paul Allen But Jimmy no reasonable person (yeah, the liberals have their teabaggers too)--no reasonable person I've heard says you give up your gun. " tell me why I, as a senior citizen, who can no longer defend myself with my bare hands against the violent actions of these narcissist gangster hoodlum wannabes, why I am supposed to give up my personal gun, my only real defense against a gang " Nobody says you're supposed to give it up. That's not even on the table. Living on the road as I do, and a senior as well, I know I'm vulnerable, and I do have two guns. Since I'm either usually in my truck or my camper, I have them within a few feet of me. Neither shoots more than 6 rounds which is the most you could get off before the shootout is over one way or another--seconds. If you have an assault rifle, it's probably not leaning on the couch; it's probably in the closet. "Gangsters" kick your door in and they are in the room with you before you can put your coffee down. You don't have a chance of getting at an assault rifle. But to your good argument: you're arguing against a straw enemy--the issue is not about taking away your protection or your hunting weapon.
5 hours ago · Like · 1






           

            



Jared Jackson No one in Washington is looking to take away your outdated right to protect yourself with a gun(unless you are trying to protect yourself with an ak-47 with a 30 round clip).
2 hours ago via mobile · Like






           

            



Timothy Byler @ Jared - or do you mean, "No one in Washington is looking to take away your outdated right to protect yourself with a gun..." TODAY?!? An age-old adage in life and in Washington is that you eat an elephant one bite at a time. This issue is not about automatic weapons. It is a bite out of fundamental rights long established for our country. This bite sets a precedent that will allow for another bite, then another, them another. If the rule of law antiquates the right to bear arms, the precedent set can later antiquate the right to freedom of speech, or expression...or religion. The issue is not guns but control. Laws have not stemmed the tide of said illegal weapons from entering our borders through cartels. Those criminals will as always find a way. Other criminals choosing to be armed will simply find new sources. They do not care about the law now and won't care about this one. This law will not disarm criminals. It will only drive the more determined criminals into the hands of organized criminals. All the while, our freedoms are stripped from us one bite at a time.
42 minutes ago via mobile · Like






           

            



Doug Nelson I still maintain that 99.9 percent of gun owners are not involved in gun violence. The guns are already out there and a buyback by the gov't. is not on the table with an estimated 300 million guns in America. Tighten up the reg's on gun show purchases, background checks, etc. but focus on mental health screening and a vigilant society.
16 minutes ago · Like






           

            



Doug Nelson By the way, I love having a reasonable discussion about this since my views continue to evolve and listening to intelligent pov's of others is helpful.
5 minutes ago · Like

This is a debate that will obviously continue and as you look to what fellow fb’ers posted, you get the idea of the thoughts people are considering surrounding this issue.

My blog, so my point gets priority…

I am greatly concerned about what happens when those who we elected to govern our land take it upon themselves to render useless the very foundation of that governing.

The attack on gun owners is an attack on the law, not on those who own a gun.  Those who own a gun for the purpose of violating the law and the rights of others already have no respect for the law. They will find other means to acquire the weapon they want in their hand to perpetuate their crime. The only ones truly affected by this change will ultimately be those for whom the law currently protects.  The law is in place to allow law-abiding citizens to protect and defend themselves.

Look at the presidential oath of office:

The Oath of Office:

I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.  

Preserve, protect and defend the Constitution that has been and remains the process of freedom.  To do all within your power to render that Constitution antiquated is to fail to preserve, protect and defend it.  Worse, if a President takes it upon himself to initiate such changes through executive order, he violates the very core beliefs that went into the architecture of that Constitution.  It becomes the beginning of a return to the mindset that people left in order to form this great nation – or worse…it becomes the beginning of the same sort of governing structure that served “oh so well” in the Soviet block, China.  Every educated civilization that has fallen, fell through the corruption of power established by regulation.

This is a battle about power. It is a battle against freedom, for it is battle to render “outdated” the freedoms established and constitutionalized by our founding fathers. It is a battle being waged – in the name of civility and humanity – but being waged by those who have decided for themselves that the freedoms that set this country apart from every other are arrogant, undeserved, unreasonable, and uncontrollable.  The day they are able to take one bite out of the Constitution, they will take steps to take the next bite…and the next…and the next.

We need to pray for our country. We need to value its liberty. We also need to guard that liberty with diligence. This is not about guns.  It is about freedom. Remember that.   

2013 - The Year of the Peacemakers

It has been quite a while since I last posted.  Life has gotten faster and busier – something I was not certain was possible.  This year feels as though it was only six months long.

In some ways, that is a good thing, for there are things about this year I could have lived without.  Yet at the same time, there are things about this year that are so precious that I will carry them in my heart forever.

These final hours of 2012 find me in the city of Vijayawada, in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India.  

The past hours have been a blur, starting with a departure from Savannah on December 28, an arrival in Hyderabad on Sunday at 6:45 a.m. which allowed mw to arrive in time to enjoy the fellowship of believers at two services – one at 9:00 a.m. and another at noon.  Before the day was over, I was aboard a train for the overnight journey to Vijayawada, where in a few moments (as of the time of this writing) I will spend the last hours of this year with friends and Christian family here.

I offer this simply because the last hours of this year seem to represent the pace of the entire year…sort of a tribute to all that has occurred.  It has caused me to consider, what has really occurred this year. One thought that has stood out in my mind is this: “Do not mistake action for accomplishment.” I spent most of today pondering that thought – has my year of action been a year of accomplishment? For family? For ministry?  For me, personally?

I believe it has.

I looked back to things spoken over my life and over the life of our family at Connection Church by Apostle John Kelly at the start of this year. He prophesied that 2012 would be a year in which we would “come into our own” in a different way. In short, we would be like David, as he transitioned from the shepherd to the warrior.

He stated that 2012 produce a paradigm shift – that we would embrace a “new style”, particularly with regard to how we stand and how we fight.  He stated that this would be a year of discovery. It would be a year where we would develop the ability to become rapid change agents. And, while we would be continuing to train, this year would be not about what happens to us, but rather, what we would do. 2012 would also be a year wherein we would become united to be ignited.

In retrospect, this prophecy has proven to be accurate. We have experienced much activity, but that activity has produced results – in our individual lives and in the lives of the community and the world we touch.  We have different footing on different ground. Like David, we have transitioned out of the pasture and into the battlefield. 

In the pasture, there is solace. You have to be watchful because the lions and bears invade the territory, but by and large, there is a peaceful atmosphere.  However, on the battlefield, there is constant engagement – the lions and bears are now armed and armored, and they fight with a vengeance.  The battles are fiercer and come faster. Yet, in the midst of the battle, there is the greater peace that is discovered when fulfilling God’s purpose in our lives.  Sure, the carnal side cries out for tranquility, but the fighter in me yells, “Who’s next!!!” 

There is something to be said for becoming a peacemaker, and that is what God is developing us to be.

Peacemakers do not compromise and negotiate terms for the sake of solace.  Peacemakers look to those things that violate God’s word and bring war against them – drawing them into captivity.  They create an atmosphere of righteousness, wherein true peace – internally and externally - can be found.

Peacemakers recognize that life and death

exist simultaneously in the tongue.

They know that every time they speak, something comes to life while something else is put to death.  By example, as you lift someone up, the belief in the value of their existence comes alive, while simultaneously, the belief that they have no value is put to death. The more positive you bring forth in your life, the more the negative is sacrificed and put to death.

2012 was wrought with challenges, yet these challenges have proven to bring the battles that force the hard decisions – and forced people to choose life, not merely embrace it.

2013 will be better – for we are stronger.  We must be more determined to fight, to win, and to stand in alignment with God’s Word and purpose. We must work to establish true peace in our lives and in the

lives of those we influence.

Be strong and of good courage. Know that all things work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose. Know that you are victorious – that the righteous are never forsaken and their seed does not beg for bread.

And have a happy and prosperous New Year!

Blessings,

Timothy

Vote Well

November 6, 2012 is Election Day in the United States of America.  In every election year, there is a lot of talk.  Ideas and ideals, objectives and objections, values and venom all seem to saturate the atmosphere as people from all sides of the political aisle weigh in with their opinion regarding how our government should be run.

This election is different than most.  There is more talk about style and less talk about substance.  We live in a day when people make decisions based on how they “feel” verses what they know.  I listen to interviews and talk to people on the streets. As I do, I become more convinced that the majority of people I talk to either do not know what our leaders believe, or they simply do not care.

People of all faith and people of no faith believe in the principle of the Good Samaritan, wherein if someone is in trouble and you have within your power the ability to help that person, help is in order.  They believe that if you choose to kill someone, it is wrong. Ask anyone and they will usually align with you when you declare, “if you do not work, you do not eat.” This is not a “dig” against someone who is unemployed – particularly in this economic environment when that problem has grown to staggering proportions.  This is a principle offered to those who simply choose to rely on others rather than find a way – any way, in some measure – to provide for their own well being.  By example, I offer what happened to a friend of mine a couple of years ago.  He is a business owner and while interviewing for a position, one man came to the scheduled appointment an announced he might as well confess that he was a “crackhead”. Oh, and he probably should not have had that beer before the interview.  With the interview over, he wanted to make certain that he interview was logged so that he could let the unemployment office he had been on a job interview that day.”  You get the picture.  

My point is, there are many shared values.  There are other values in which we are greatly divided.  Oddly enough, most of those values greatly conflict with the values we have in common. For instance, we all believe in equal rights.  We all believe that murder is wrong.  We have conflicting views about a woman’s right to choose and abortion. Even though science has proven that life begins at conception and pre-term babies have been born to live normal lives, the woman’s right to make choices for her life makes it possible to kill the child basically as long as it is still attached by an umbilical cord.

We have other conflicts. We want the freedom to say what we want and do what we want, but we wrestle with the cost that has to be paid to secure that freedom – forgetting that if we are not willing to ay that price, history has proven that those freedoms will eventually disappear. Our nation’s 200+ year history tends to ignore the history that precedes her. She moves along, making the same choices which led to the demise of many other civilizations.

The political world calls these “wedge issues”. They define these as issues that people bring up to stir trouble and divide us as a people.  They are used as leverage to sway an election.  I say if there is a wedge, it is found first and foremost in our hearts.  In the last decade, our nation has proven to be polarized.  We are basically split down the middle 50/50. Any first year science student knows that if you place an acid and an alkali together, they neutralize one another and render each other ineffective and powerless.  In many ways, that is what has happened to our great country. And, it did not start form the top down. It started in the heart of individuals fighting not for common good but rather for what was expedient for their individual lives.

The Bible tells us that a double minded man is unstable in all of his ways. A man who is a great worker and provider for his family and a caring husband and father can be plagued with an addiction to substance or even pornography.  Although he is clear on every other area of his life, the area of conflict with his own values system ill sooner or later eat at the fabric of every area of his life, neutralizing all of the good that he has done.

It is how it is with our nation. Men with a common interest of right and wrong, who even with varying backgrounds of faith held to tenants of faith with great conviction.  They designed a government with the clear understanding of basic right and wrong. They even allowed for a process of adjustment in that government, clear in the knowledge that they as men were fallible and that there would always be room for improvement.  Yet the improvements were never designed to work in opposition of basic truth.  Man has chosen to violate that, just as man chose to leave that, find a new land and start fresh, free from corruption. In shot, government has not made us. We made government.

In today’s society, what we believe is irrelevant. Christians will declare murder is wrong yet vote to put someone in office who, with great passion and intent, will fight for the right to condone murder.  They argue and say “That is not the issue. I do not need the government to tell me right from wrong.” Yet they will rely on the same government to get into their business and make other choices for them on how they are allowed to spend their money. What they can say in their churches and what their kids are allowed to believe in school.

As a nation, we are developing blindness.   

By ignoring what we know to be true, we can fight for how we feel.  We make decisions based on what we feel like we want.  That is the kind of thinking that allows someone to enter an affair against their spouse.  “They made me feel better.” “I felt like that is what I needed to do.” Who cares what is right or what I believe beyond the emotion I am feeling right now?

Back to November 6 – You have no right to be frustrated at the demise of our nation if you allow your decisions and your vote to ignore truth.  Neither do you have the right to be frustrated at the demise of our nation if your political decision is to forgo your right and responsibility to vote.  You cannot make it about style.  You cannot make it about what is cool. You cannot make it about the rhetoric that spins from both sides of the political aisle.  You must choose based on what is right and true.  The nation will not be blessed as long as her policies and values violate the will of God.

Vote well. Vote with a conscious. Vote.

The American Spirit

This past month has been filled with many significant events.  It was witness to National Conventions for the Republicans and the Democrats, in preparation for what will be a frustrating and mud-slinging filled presidential election.  It is the anniversary of the September 11 attack on our country - an event highlighted by attacks on our embassies. It is a time when a great deal of rhetoric about The American Spirit is being thrown out there by politicians and pundits, "news" (if you can call it that) commentators, an even john Q. Public, who mostly seems to rattle off information gained more from the spin of the formerly mentioned "news outlets' rather than from real honest to goodness research.  It all led me to think more about what the American Spirit really represents.  Everyone else seems to offer their two-cents worth.  Here is mine. TJB

"Good Night, John Boy!"  I grew up with "The Waltons".  The show was a portrayal of a simple American family who lived in the mountains of Virginia during the depression.  They plot and writing was simple, yet compelling - so much so, that the show is still regularly aired today.  Momma and Daddy were John and Olivia Walton, who had a house full of kids and Grandma and Grandpa, too.  Oh yes, family was family and family tends to its own.  It is the responsibility part of the American dream.  It has been lived, written about and portrayed through art throughout American history.

One time First Lady, Hillary Clinton, capitalized on the concept, as she pushed forward with her "it takes a village to raise a child."   

These days, reality shows have created a model, wherein they build a "pseudo family unit".  They cast people with different values and ideologies, who are from different walks of life, into a show where they live together. They build relationships (for better or worse), or more accurately form "alliances" for the pursuit of winning the ultimate prize, which is the bridegroom, the modeling contract, or the $200,000 at the end of the show season.

The problem is that throughout American history, there has been a steady decline in the family aspect of the American spirit.  "It takes a village to raise a child" sounds workable - up until a teacher is faced with a rebellious student and has to bring correction to that student.  More often than not, that teacher (and the administrative staff) finds him or herself on the angry end of a parent who vehemently argues, "You have no right to do that to my child."  When I was growing up, (seemingly the "Walton's" era but actually more the "Brady Bunch" era), the worse thing that could happen to me was to get into trouble at school.  If the principal had to deal with me, I could count on having Dad deal with me again when I got home.

There has been a steady decline in the family responsibility which used to play a vital role in the American spirit.   

People looked out for each other because family

looked out for each other.  

 Even when the Hatfield's and the McCoy's fought one another, they would stand side by side to defend their way of life from outside intruders.  Now, such a sentiment is considered archaic.   

We have evolved from such thinking.   Today's philosopher tries to invoke the sentiment, "Can't we just all get along." The answer is "no."

To get along means to be fitly joined together. It means that values must be common.  Goals must be shared.  For goals to be shared, each player has to have a goal that is larger than himself.  Even the simplest reality show has proven this about our society.  Some say that television is a reflection of life.  In reality, television has, for most people, become the “shaper” of life. Its programming has replaced reality as the educator of how life should be. 

Today's society does not reflect a true American Spirit.  It  is a society divided by extremes.  One extreme is the reality show, where everyone's goal is self-motivated.  Children today helping on the home, often do so because they "want something" rather than simply recognizing the importance of 

doing their share.

The opposite extreme is socialism, wherein all things individual are relinquished for the common good.  There are no individual goals, only common ones.  Oddly enough, throughout the years, those who labor to govern a socialist society usually manage to build incredible personal wealth and power.  It is one of the strongest forms of bondage in the earth.

The beauty of the American spirit is that it was fashioned in the way God designed us.  He created us with the ability to overcome and be victorious in our personal goals, while at the same time, make us effective in reaching common goals.  His litmus test was simple.  We are a part of His family and as a result, our individual goals are still in keeping with the values He placed before us.  The element which causes it to work can be carried through the family unit all the way to the success of a nation.  This has proven true in this country throughout her history.

When you have values of righteousness, you have the values of the family of God.  When your value system is founded in God's value system, your personal goals do not conflict with the goals of those who share the same values.  They enhance those goals.  Entrepreneurs flourish individually because they benefit others.  Family members excel because they have strength that comes from sticking together and making it work.  John Boy can be a writer.  Ben can own his own business. Mary Ellen can be a nurse.  Jason can pursue his music.  Elizabeth can find true love.  And, at the end of the day, the family unit flourishes because embedded in each of their goals is the understanding that we are stronger when we are together.

This is the principle God gave His children from the beginning.  It is the principle which was introduced by the founding fathers of our nation.  It is the key to the survival and success of The American Spirit.   

 

A Trustworthy Man

A man is not measured by who enters or exits his life. He is not measured by the circumstances that surround him. He is measured by how he faces those circumstances and by who he chooses to be regardless of others. The hardest part about being trustworthy is in finding others who are equally trustworthy

My son, Josiah is such a man.  He is trustworthy. It is one of his greatest qualities. He is trustworthy even, at time, to his own detriment.  It makes him a hero to me.

Every man has his own measure of how he views himself and others.  That measure takes into consideration the thoughts, feelings and expectations that are embedded in the DNA of relationships. This means that a key factor in building relationships is understanding the measure of others. 

The closer your standard of measure, the greater strength and depth you can foster in the relationship. 

If the standard of measure has a wide gap, here will be a limit to the level of relationship.  Carry that relationship too far or too deep and the separation found in that measure will bring disappointment and pain.

The Bible warns us about being “unequally yoked”.  We tend to apply this to marriages and relationships on the basis of faith and belief in God.  I believe that this principle has much greater meaning. Many people of faith, who believe in God, still have different priorities and ideas about who or what is important in their lives. 

A trustworthy man is slow to relate and to trust because once he enters a relationship, he is all in. His loyalty runs deep.  He also looks for the person on the other side of that relationship to place the same level of value on that relationship. He enters such relationships slowly because he knows that if that measure is not “equally yoked”, there will be pain. A trust worthy man is often he one who has the hardest time trusting because others do not share his value of trust.

For such a man, and for all of us, the key is to learn how to recognize the measure that others hold in their own lives. Once you can identify that, you can develop an idea of the strength a relationship will have.  When you understand the priorities of another person, you learn to anticipate and expect how that person will respond.  You develop an idea of what level of strength and trust can apply to that relationship to keep it healthy.

To the trustworthy – never stop being trustworthy. It is a rare quality in a person. Others will not understand it.  They will even try to capitalize on your loyalty.  But in the end, there will be those who enter your life who share the same values. Such are the relationships of men like David and Jonathan, or James and John in the Bible.  Their loyalty toward one another changed the course of history.

To the trustworthy – you are a hero.

A New Name

This week marks the end of an era. Life happens in seasons and like chapters in a book, those seasons have a beginning and an end.  The church that I have the privilege of pastoring has come to the end of such a chapter.  For nearly twenty years, we have been known to our community as Bethesda Church.  

This week we transition into a new name – 

Connection Church.

The name change is not just a transition, but rather one part of a seismic shift that our church has undergone.  Much like a person experiences during a coming of age or entering a marriage, entering a new season of life brings on new joys and challenges. It is a time when you have the opportunity to embrace fresh ideas, insights, plans and dreams. It is also a time that can necessitate the release of certain ideas, insights, plans and dreams.  It is a time for change and that is a good thing because 

growth without change is impossible.

What’s in a name? Your name defines you to others.  Every name carries with it meaning and that meaning should reflect who you are.  There are numerous instances in scripture where God changed the name of an individual based on a shift that had occurred in his or her life.  Jacob became Israel. Simon became Peter. Saul the persecutor became Paul, the Apostle.

I identified our transition as a seismic shift.  A seismic shift is caused by a movement in the earth that creates tremors of enormous proportions or, earthquakes.  These tremors usually have highly significant consequences.  We are living in a day and time when the earth is being shaken.  More accurately, the earth’s culture is being shaken.  That follows scripture which instructs: “…that which  can be shaken will be shaken…”  That instruction continues: “…when the shaking is done, that which cannot be shaken will remain.”  We are living through such a shaking in our world. Obviously one goal is to be standing when the shaking stops.  However, our goal became more defined.  We are looking to those who are being shaken.  How will they survive? What will be left of them when the shaking occurs in their life? 

This seismic shift challenged us in several ways.  One, what needed to shaken free of our own lives? Two, how prepared are we to reach those who have been or are being shaken? Three, how are we positioned to actually reach those who need to be reached?

This drew us to a redefining of our purpose.  In order to reach people, bring healing to their lives and help them not only put the pieces together, but discover purpose, we needed to become more relational.  We were becoming connectors.  Our vision took on fresh meaning as we embraced the concept of connectivity – connecting to God, to each other, and to our community – all for the purpose of developing Kingdom relationships and fulfilling God’s desire in the lives of the people He loves.

So our name changed to represent who we are and what we do. 

Our purpose is to establish an atmosphere where specific relationships can be fostered and developed. 

The first and foremost is the development of a relationship with God that is not just a Sunday experience, but a real straightforward 24/7 relationship with Him. Next, we want to foster relationships within our church family that not only recognize, but add dimension to the value of each individual life.  Third, we want that relational atmosphere to impact the people in our community, creating an environment where we can demonstrate the true love and light of Jesus Christ, and where, through the process, people can come to recognize the value and their need of being connected to God.

A new era – a new vision – a new name. 

                                     We are Connection Church. 

Limiting Parental Access At School

It has been a while since my last blog.  We are in the middle of a HUGE transition at our church. 

Next week we are changing our name and re-introducing ourselves to the community as CONNECTION CHURCH.

This has come after three years of preparation and we are very excited to see what God will do.

Part of the reason for the name change is to better identify with how we relate...to God, to each other and to our community.  In the interest of community relations, we have had a difficult situation occur this week regarding our school system.  I personally did not want to divide my focus during the transition we are facing, but considering our commitment to community involvement and the detrimental nature of the problem, i found myself compelled to become involved.

There is a new policy in place in our school which greatly limits parental access to the classroom of their children.  I have sat in on the school board meeting, approached and met with school board officials and have communicated my concerns with local media, as well as encouraging others to do so.  In this blog, I will post an editorial scheduled to run in this week's local paper, The Coastal Courier. I offer this advance copy to my friends and readers to ask you to pray for a positive solution to the conflict our school system and community are facing.

Liberty County School Classroom Parental Observation Policy

There is a great deal of controversy that has arisen in the wake of a policy that was put into place in the Liberty County School System. This policy affects a parent’s ability to access his or her child’s classroom for the purpose of observation.  Those behind the policy maintain that its sole purpose is to protect children and teachers from outside dangers.  They communicate that his policy is about limiting school access in the interests of safety. However, the people being limited are not unknown people. They are the parents who registered their children for school, met with teachers and administrators, and pay taxes into the school system.

The same policy that removes almost all parental observational access from the classroom has requirements for visits to the school. They include sign-ins, a requirement of legal guardianship of a student in the school, and even a provision to require photo identification to be presented upon entering school property.  The only exception to these requirements occurs on days when there are special events, when a parent and community residents -meaning anyone - can enter the building unescorted, walk unnoticed into a crowd of most or even all of the students.  If this policy is about safety, this issue should be addressed. The ability for a stranger to walk into the crowd is a far greater and more realistic threat than the likelihood of a stranger to enter school grounds and especially a classroom on a given day.

In these times, our children must be protected in the classroom and the school system has a daunting task of maintaining their safety. This issue has been spun as a safety issue. Yet, while it does little to address real safety, it does offer a great deal to protect teachers from unannounced observation by a concerned parent. To call it a safety policy damages the credibility of the system and the trust between parents and teachers. It makes it more difficult to deal with both issues.     

Today’s teachers are limited in how they can maintain discipline and order in a classroom. As a result, there are things that can occur which can greatly hinder a child’s ability to learn. Teachers often resort to raised voices in the classroom and occasionally, the classroom environment becomes unruly – even chaotic, which can be confusing and even damaging to a child. Such an environment can promote misgivings or even fear in a child and in so doing, can paralyze that child’s ability to perform and produce in the classroom, resulting in greater failure, not only academically, but in the child’s ability to relate with the teacher as an authority figure.

A child’s greatest hope in that moment is for his or her parent to have a real understanding of what is occurring in the classroom – not what is occurring in a pre-planned 20 minute observation visit, but what is occurring in the chaotic moments.  Should a parent have unfettered access? No. But a parent should be able to address an immediate concern, approach an administrator and, with that administrator, enter a classroom in that moment if there is reason for the parent to believe that the classroom environment is detrimental to the child.  This is no different than the policy that the Division of Family and Children’s Services (DFCS) imposes on a household if even one concern of a child reaches their attention.  If the classroom environment is as it should be, you have the reinforcement of witness of the administrator.  If the classroom environment is jeopardizing the learning process, it has a greater chance of being recognized and addressed properly through the administrator.

Over the course of a year, a child will spend the better part of 180 days at school. Counting a seven hour day, this means aside from extra-curricular activity, that a child will spend in excess of 1,200 hundred hours in the authority of his teachers and school administrative staff. Under this policy, unless federally mandated, a parent is only allowed to observe his child in a learning environment for 40 minutes of those 1,200 hundred hours. 72,000 minutes of school – 40 minutes of observation – preplanned, pre-prepared observation.   That is a ratio of 1/1800 minutes.

The school system touts that it wants the parents to be involved in the education process, but in reality, this policy only allows the parent to observe the classroom environment – the most important environment - for one minute per thirty hours of school.

I respectfully ask this board to reconsider this policy. Parents need greater access than this to the classrooms and teachers of our children.  You need to consider that you are sending the message that this policy is not simply about security and protecting students and staff, but about also protecting staff from a child’s voiced concerns, and about limiting a parent’s access to ascertain true information regarding that child’s concerns.