Earlier this month, I began a journey that has forced me to consider just how much faith I actually have and where it is placed. This journey was jump-started with the abrupt and unexpected loss of my job. Since then, I've been on a roller-coaster of stress, anger, fear and other emotions I'm not familiar enough with to give a name to. I've also been witness to some of the most amazing outpouring of care and love that I've ever seen outside of my own family. Friends and family alike have rallied around us to give advice, support, encouragement and even some unexpected Christmas gifts for our kids. We had a wonderful, quiet, white Christmas with the kids, and have not yet felt the true sting of the major loss of income we're facing. But as the New Year approaches, the bank account dwindles, and no real prospects have panned out, the old creeping fear starts dancing through my thoughts and keeping me awake at night.
Its during these sleepless hours that I struggle with my faith and I've prayed with all my might to be able to overcome my weakness. In my heart, I know that God is in complete control of our situation, that He loves us and will not let us down. But my mind races down avenues of possibilities and worst case scenarios that are all too close to simply ignore.
Then, a couple of nights ago, my son taught me an important lesson about faith. Shortly after learning to walk, he learned to climb. It has been a constant battle since then to keep him off the higher furniture and counters in the house and prevent a major accident occurring. As my wife and I were preparing dinner, I heard the tell-tell sound of his grunts as he scaled some piece of our kitchen landscape. I turned to see him just cresting the top of the dinner table. I scolded him, and told him to get down. He smiled at me (ladies, beware this smile) and took two steps forward--
right off the edge of the table. His smile never wavered for an instant, and he even laughed out loud as I caught him a few inches from impact. Heart hammering in my chest, I was on the verge of reprimanding him until it hit me...
My son had just demonstrated the true and perfect faith that we should have in our Heavenly Father.
Later that night, I wept as I prayed. Not the tears of frustration or fear that had been pressing on the backs of my eyes for weeks, but tears of joy, faith even. I felt truly at peace with the knowledge that even though I feel like I'm hurtling over the edge of a cliff, God is waiting with open arms to catch me and put me back on solid ground.
Regards, Chimneyphish
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Monday, November 23, 2009
Thanksgiving
With Thanksgiving only a couple of days away, I started asking myself "what am I thankful for?" A lot of things came into my mind as answers to that question.
I'm thankful for:
My wife.
My children.
My family.
My friends.
My house.
My car.
My job.
My life.
There are a lot of other things that flit through my mind, but each one carries with it the same sense of emptiness, the same feeling of eventual loss. I know in my heart that eventually all of these things will be gone, reduced to ashes and dust. In the grand scheme of things, most of what I'm thankful for will pass away from this world unnoticed. Fortunately, though, this world is not the end, and what we should all be truly thankful for will endure far longer than our short-lived sojourn on this planet.
So, lets try a revised list.
Today, I'm thankful for:
God, who has blessed me with life and has taken a personal interest in it.
My wife, whom God has brought into my life to partner with me until death.
My children, whom God has entrusted me with, to lead and raise in His ways.
My family, parents, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles and cousins, whom God has also blessed and have been a blessing to me.
My friends, both the fellow believers and the unbelievers, that God has put in my life for support, camaraderie, laughter and love.
My house, which would not have been possible without many of the things listed above and below, all God sent and supported, that fits our needs so well.
My car, which was a gift from a good friend and has been a blessing to our family.
My job, which allows me to provide for my family, spend time with my kids, enjoy weekly bible studies, all while providing an essential service to our community.
My life. Which God began shaping in my mothers womb. Which he has sustained through numerous trials and tribulations. Which has been blessed, repeatedly and freely. And most importantly, has been made eternal by the sacrifice of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Yes, I am eternally thankful for this blessing, this forgiveness, this amazing Grace of God. Who so loved the world that He sent His only begotten son to die for our sins and set us free from the debt we incurred by falling far short of His standards. So that we will not die, but live forever in His presence and through his Grace.
Thank You, Lord! For having such mercy on us. For loving us and seeking us first!
Regards, Chimneyphish
I'm thankful for:
My wife.
My children.
My family.
My friends.
My house.
My car.
My job.
My life.
There are a lot of other things that flit through my mind, but each one carries with it the same sense of emptiness, the same feeling of eventual loss. I know in my heart that eventually all of these things will be gone, reduced to ashes and dust. In the grand scheme of things, most of what I'm thankful for will pass away from this world unnoticed. Fortunately, though, this world is not the end, and what we should all be truly thankful for will endure far longer than our short-lived sojourn on this planet.
So, lets try a revised list.
Today, I'm thankful for:
God, who has blessed me with life and has taken a personal interest in it.
My wife, whom God has brought into my life to partner with me until death.
My children, whom God has entrusted me with, to lead and raise in His ways.
My family, parents, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles and cousins, whom God has also blessed and have been a blessing to me.
My friends, both the fellow believers and the unbelievers, that God has put in my life for support, camaraderie, laughter and love.
My house, which would not have been possible without many of the things listed above and below, all God sent and supported, that fits our needs so well.
My car, which was a gift from a good friend and has been a blessing to our family.
My job, which allows me to provide for my family, spend time with my kids, enjoy weekly bible studies, all while providing an essential service to our community.
My life. Which God began shaping in my mothers womb. Which he has sustained through numerous trials and tribulations. Which has been blessed, repeatedly and freely. And most importantly, has been made eternal by the sacrifice of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Yes, I am eternally thankful for this blessing, this forgiveness, this amazing Grace of God. Who so loved the world that He sent His only begotten son to die for our sins and set us free from the debt we incurred by falling far short of His standards. So that we will not die, but live forever in His presence and through his Grace.
Thank You, Lord! For having such mercy on us. For loving us and seeking us first!
Regards, Chimneyphish
Friday, August 7, 2009
hmph
Ya know, when I was younger and still in school, we used to hear all these stories about corrupt and tyrannical governments like the Soviet Union and Red China and all of the horrible things they did to the people they ruled over. I remember thinking to myself "How could the people of these countries let these things happen? How does one allow the government to get so big and so powerful that they can just walk all over the very population that supports and pays for everything?" I also remember being very proud and thankful that I lived in a great, free country where nothing like that could ever happen.
Well, I no longer wonder how these things come about, and I'm no longer proud to live in a "free" country where these things could never happen. Instead, I'm seeing our once great nation spiral down into depths far worse than what I once considered atrocious. As we trade away more and more of our rights, liberties and freedoms, our so-called leaders lie directly to our faces as they rob us and our future generations blind. I watch and read the news everyday, hoping that there will be an article in the back of the paper or some disclaimer after a newscast denouncing the whole big mess as one giant hoax!
How could we let this happen? How can the officials who have sworn to uphold and defend our constitution get away with so many crimes against our nation? Why did we, the people, let them?
How can we regain control of our own country again and take our destiny back into our own hands?
To be honest, the outlook does not seem good.
Until we, the people, stop accepting the bold faced lies we're fed, stop mindlessly voting by party instead of by character, stop allowing our "representatives" to simply dismiss our complaints as being "manufactured" instead of taking them seriously, stop giving into the fear-mongering that has run so rampant since 9-11, we will never be a free country again.
Just in the past 2 days, I've heard that our public outrage over the upcoming health care laws is "manufactured;" that the people speaking out at the town hall meetings are (get this) "disrupting the democratic process," and are comparable to Nazi's, murderers, brown shirts, lynch mobs and Timothy McVeigh; protesters at these meetings are "too well dressed" or too organized to be taken seriously (excuse me?); that despite the (well deserved) ribbing congress gave the bankrupt car company's CEO's for flying private jets to their bail-out meeting, these hypocrites want $500 million to buy some planes for themselves; and of course the idea of reporting anyone who publicly or privately speaks out against the Obama administration's agendas so they can be tracked.
Has the whole country gone insane or what? Do we really think we can just keep on rolling along with these policies? Can we afford to just keep printing money until the dollar can be compared to the mighty peso? Can we trust a government that can't balance it's own budgets to run a national health care? Can we trust a president who is ushering in a new age of McCarthyism? Can we take seriously a national leader who says that people exorcising their freedom of speech are disruptive to democracy?
What ever happened to a government of the people, by the people, for the people? Wasn't that country supposed to never perish from the earth? When did it? Our elected officials ignore us. They disregard and disrespect our voices. They lie to our faces to gain power and then take our liberty in exchange for a false sense of security (Ben Franklin said some nasty things about that sorta thinking!). Who do they think they are? Where do they think they govern? This is America, dammit! We're not supposed to have Czars! Our representatives aren't supposed to ignore us and lie to us! They are supposed to represent us!
Well, I no longer wonder how these things come about, and I'm no longer proud to live in a "free" country where these things could never happen. Instead, I'm seeing our once great nation spiral down into depths far worse than what I once considered atrocious. As we trade away more and more of our rights, liberties and freedoms, our so-called leaders lie directly to our faces as they rob us and our future generations blind. I watch and read the news everyday, hoping that there will be an article in the back of the paper or some disclaimer after a newscast denouncing the whole big mess as one giant hoax!
How could we let this happen? How can the officials who have sworn to uphold and defend our constitution get away with so many crimes against our nation? Why did we, the people, let them?
How can we regain control of our own country again and take our destiny back into our own hands?
To be honest, the outlook does not seem good.
Until we, the people, stop accepting the bold faced lies we're fed, stop mindlessly voting by party instead of by character, stop allowing our "representatives" to simply dismiss our complaints as being "manufactured" instead of taking them seriously, stop giving into the fear-mongering that has run so rampant since 9-11, we will never be a free country again.
Just in the past 2 days, I've heard that our public outrage over the upcoming health care laws is "manufactured;" that the people speaking out at the town hall meetings are (get this) "disrupting the democratic process," and are comparable to Nazi's, murderers, brown shirts, lynch mobs and Timothy McVeigh; protesters at these meetings are "too well dressed" or too organized to be taken seriously (excuse me?); that despite the (well deserved) ribbing congress gave the bankrupt car company's CEO's for flying private jets to their bail-out meeting, these hypocrites want $500 million to buy some planes for themselves; and of course the idea of reporting anyone who publicly or privately speaks out against the Obama administration's agendas so they can be tracked.
Has the whole country gone insane or what? Do we really think we can just keep on rolling along with these policies? Can we afford to just keep printing money until the dollar can be compared to the mighty peso? Can we trust a government that can't balance it's own budgets to run a national health care? Can we trust a president who is ushering in a new age of McCarthyism? Can we take seriously a national leader who says that people exorcising their freedom of speech are disruptive to democracy?
What ever happened to a government of the people, by the people, for the people? Wasn't that country supposed to never perish from the earth? When did it? Our elected officials ignore us. They disregard and disrespect our voices. They lie to our faces to gain power and then take our liberty in exchange for a false sense of security (Ben Franklin said some nasty things about that sorta thinking!). Who do they think they are? Where do they think they govern? This is America, dammit! We're not supposed to have Czars! Our representatives aren't supposed to ignore us and lie to us! They are supposed to represent us!
Monday, July 27, 2009
getting started
Hi. This is my first attempt at this phenomenon called blogging. I'm told by a very trusted source that this can be a great way to get my thoughts down and let my imagination let off steam every now and again. I'll state now that I make no apologies for what you may read here, and will make only the smallest effort to keep anything here politically correct since I have the utmost respect for my freedom of speech and very little tolerance for ridiculous rules of social conduct that infringe on that right.
I think, therefore I blog.
If you disagree with me, that is fine. That is your right. If you would like to debate with me, that is also fine. I like a good debate. Get nasty or disrespectful with me at your own risk, though. I give as good as I get. I can respect many different viewpoints on many different topics and am not above being proven wrong. I don't go out of my way to offend anyone, but do not censor my thoughts just because my beliefs might possibly offend someone either. I believe that our current culture has done a great disservice by forcing everyone to wear a false mask in public and pretending to be and believe something that is in direct opposition to who and what they truly are.
Therefor, I will put my thoughts down as I think them. I will be true to my self and my God and my beliefs and say what I want to say. If you like it, great. If not, also great. I would love to get feedback on either account.
Respectfully,
Chimneyphish
I think, therefore I blog.
If you disagree with me, that is fine. That is your right. If you would like to debate with me, that is also fine. I like a good debate. Get nasty or disrespectful with me at your own risk, though. I give as good as I get. I can respect many different viewpoints on many different topics and am not above being proven wrong. I don't go out of my way to offend anyone, but do not censor my thoughts just because my beliefs might possibly offend someone either. I believe that our current culture has done a great disservice by forcing everyone to wear a false mask in public and pretending to be and believe something that is in direct opposition to who and what they truly are.
Therefor, I will put my thoughts down as I think them. I will be true to my self and my God and my beliefs and say what I want to say. If you like it, great. If not, also great. I would love to get feedback on either account.
Respectfully,
Chimneyphish
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