Posts

• It is not like Jesus to deny life because of a lack of money
• Their currently is no real competition for us to pick our own insurance.
• Our care is currently rationed by heath insurance companies and the dollar.
• Our hospitals are going broke caring for those who cannot pay.
• We are going broke, about half of all personal bankruptcies are health care.
• Some of the mentally ill are stuck because they can’t get care, and they can’t get a job because they have no care.

Luke 10:25-37 covers the story of the Good Samaritan. It was used by Jesus to define who is a neighbor, as in, if we should love our neighbor as ourselves than who is our neighbor? Jesus basic answer is everyone is your neighbor.

My neighbors are hurting. In the past 8 years of my ministry I have cared for many a person who needed medical care for asthma, flu, injuries and mental illness but didn’t get the care they needed because they didn’t have insurance. I have also dealt with another who, because of insurance rules, couldn’t leave the hospital. She had a machine she needed to sleep at night. Industry monopolies meant that only one company in our area provides the machine and they were haggling with the insurance company. She had to wait weeks. She put on so much public pressure including a newspaper article; she was finally released.

Recently a man lost his job, because of the economy has not been able to get a new one, got ill. He didn’t go to the doctor until it was almost too late. Thankfully we have a Catholic hospital in our city who will treat an individual who can’t pay (Socialized medicine, just the Catholics are the social part). But hospitals can’t stay open long treating patients who can’t pay.

It is not Godly, based on the teachings of Jesus, to devalue life in the way our current system does. No money, no care. Currently hospitals are forced to treat patients who come into the Emergency Room whether they can pay or not. How many of us have waited hours for treatment because things that should be treated by a family doctor are treated in the ER.

Worse is the condition of those who need mental health treatment. Some people could function well in society if they had the care and medication they desperately need. However they can’t afford it so they live a life of confusion and chaos, often ending up in jail where they might get the prescription they couldn’t get on the outside. I have had 2 experiences just like this in my life already and I pastor a very small church. Imagine being confused and disoriented only to become aware of yourself in jail and know that if they release you, you will go back to the jail of your mind.

Fair competition is the life blood of capitalism. Right now most people have little to no option in regard to health care. They take what their employer offers, usually 1 or 2 plans. Wouldn’t it be great if we could shop for health insurance like we shop for auto insurance? But we can’t, because the rates are too high and they deny anyone with any kind of health problem unless you are willing to pay a huge rate increase.

Back in 1993 I was a student at Baylor and went to a debate between British students and the Baylor debate team. I remember the Baylor students defending our system by saying “Most of the current uninsured are young, and they don’t really need health insurance. … If you want an experimental treatment just pay for a plan that allows it.” They were dumb statements then and they’re dumb now. Everyone gets ill, at any time. The current H1N1 virus will probably affect those in the 20-30 range worse than any other age bracket and it comes on us at a time when many are unemployed. A side note, the British students liked their health care system.

I have often debated about faking an illness just to get the medication for my poor friend. How can we as lovers of our neighbors not think something needs to be done? How can we deny that life is precious, more precious than how much you can pay for it?

I am not advocating a certain plan. I am advocating change, radical change. I am advocating getting away from getting rich on people’s lives.

Why is it that we have the lowest average life span in the developed world and claim to have the best health care system?

Will we love our neighbor enough to pay so that they might live? Like the Good Samaritan did?

Someone fired me up tonight. On one of my friend's posts they posted this,

A while back I was totally overwhelmed. I had been falsely accused and thought I was about to be in the pits of financial hell. At the time I had shifted my addictive personality to workaholism, taking all joy from all the hard work I was doing. I figured workaholism was ok because at least I was producing something. But now all the production I had done looked like it was for nothing. I was incredibly irate with God and completely confused. Where was my happiness? So God helped me learn happiness.

In a bizarre spiritual moment, days before, I had heard a psychologist talking on the radio about happiness. He said that happiness is unattainable because we always return to a new normal. People adapt and they return to their original emotional state. We usually don’t stay depressed or happy. It made sense to me. We say stuff doesn’t buy happiness but many of the working class and lower classes would say poverty doesn’t make you happy either. And anyone that has experienced the joy of a Christmas morning knows that stuff can produce a lot of happiness. But we also know that by 3 in the afternoon of that same day much of the happiness is gone as the joy of presents return to just having stuff.

So I set out that day to ponder with God where does happiness come from? How can I stop seeking relief in addictive practices? How can I cope but not be in denial in about the reality of this real world. Ponder these two sets of verses:

“How happy is the man who does not follow the advice of the wicked, or take the path of sinners, or join a group of mockers! Instead, his delight is in the Lord’s instruction, and he meditates on it day and night.” ^{Psalm 1:1-2}

“giving thanks always for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,” ^{Ephesians 5:20 HCSB}

 Happiness in the way of Jesus is about action and direction. Will we live for a momentary pleasure in substance, danger, or speech, or will we sell-out, and live a committed life even though we can’t, at present, see any benefit or pleasure?

As I look back on my short life no shame comes in my mind of the good I did, the sin I avoided, the people I didn’t speak ill of. But instantaneous is the recall of my errors and shame when I think of the crap I did to roommates, family, friends, enemies, co-workers, and even myself.

Yet I don’t live in the past. I live towards a partially known future. I will either die or Jesus will come back. In the years to come past I will still be pleased by the good I was a part of and having to remind myself when the shame returns that I have been forgiven. So I make myself a slave to the good and this produces some happiness.

But depressing times still come and happiness is still fleeting, which is when the next verse becomes so useful. It is always possible to be thankful. And thanksgiving changes our emotional state, it can always be worse and that can be the beginning of our thankfulness. How many of us are truly honest when we say of someone’s death, “the time she was dying was so good because they had time to say good-bye to their loved ones.” Or the opposite, “her death was so quick she didn’t feel any pain.” And we really are truly thankful in those seemingly horrible moments. Yet in the crap of a bad day at work or this on-going bad economy it seems that one can forget the power of thankfulness and turn to addiction, habits, and simple pleasure to cope. But the power of Thankfulness, giving thanks to God in every situation can certainly help us improve our outlook, give us hope for the future and strength to make right decisions.

If you truly want to follow Jesus then use his coping mechanisms not your own: love God, follow His ways, Be thankful.

Did you know that Sylvester Stallone is an Oscar winner? And not for acting but for the best picture that he wrote, Rocky. I watched the last and latest movie in the series tonight, Rocky Balboa. I loved it! It was slow, methodical and incredibly deep. It is not a light, silly, bam-bam movie. It was about not only a character, but a writer. It was Stallone saying good-bye, laying it all out, doing everything he wanted to do, finishing. As a high school football player I can remember guys motivating themselves as they listened on their walk-man to Eye of the Tiger. I am not sure if it works this way for all, but whenever I hear those first trumpet notes of Rocky, I am ready to Punch Someone Out!

But as demonstrated in this movie, life isn’t about physically punching someone. God didn’t call us to a “battle against flesh and blood.” At times I think those of us who look for a fight think we can win by hurting someone who is doing wrong. Like if we yell, do something outrageous, “don’t take it anymore”, insert whatever other phrase here you got, we can actually accomplish something for God. Who is the real winner? The man who has outbursts of anger or the Lord Jesus who died on the cross? The Paul who killed those who disagreed with him or the servant Paul who followed the Lord all the way to his heads removal at the hands of the Romans? The politicians who try to legislate for power and wealth or the politician William Wilberforce who shortened his life so that the British would end the slave trade? The minority leader bombing, shooting, and injuring innocents to right wrongs or Martin Luther King who got in the face of all the bullies and forced them to show their ridiculous anger to the world?

So what is real punching? For a real man it’s a question that must be answered. God has called us to be a part of this battle that is not against flesh and blood but how do we fight? For we are called to be warriors in this battle that He will win. But how, how are we to fight? Some say it’s by being nice, polite, dignified, or worse like a dog on their belly with paws in the air just waiting for someone to show them some love.

But it isn’t. Like a Ninja we are to be self-controlled. It’s part of the fruit of the spirit. Like a Knight we are to be ones of a code: Love the Lord Your God with all your heart and love your neighbor as yourself. Like a Samurai we are to be able at a moment’s notice to let loose with our weapons: prayer, love, courage, sacrifice and obedience to the Lord. Like a Marine we go to the place no one else will go. We walk into the home of the grieving mother and grieve with her, into the face of the gangster and give love and respect, to the hands of the pervert we bring acceptance of a real person who can be changed by a loving God. If it’s hard, if it’s difficult, if all others would run scared or become like a self-destructive animal biting anyone and anything in fear, the Warrior of God does not. Instead he punches not with physical fists, those are useless in this fight, but with punches of the love of God. And though times of exhaustion come and punches are relentless from the enemy, like Rocky, the Warrior of God gets up and stands! For as long as the Lord calls him to stand.

How can He not win? The Victory is secure, now we are just picking up medals!

                What can really change this world? I am really happy that an African-American is about to be President. Regardless of his politics it is a pleasing sight to see this breakthrough occurring. I think some things will change, some things will stay the same, and some things will get worse. Humans have an amazing ability to cope and produce a new normal, just think we are all thrilled that gas cost $2 a gallon, just $2! We have an amazing ability to cope.

                I really don’t know how much my actual daily life will change with a new president or even a new mayor, although I expect the new mayor to effect my life a little more. What I do know will change my life is what is going on in my church community and in my relationship with God. We are doing two very tough things that we haven’t done in a while or ever before. We are praying and we are discipling.

                For those of you unfamiliar with discipling, the closest thing to it is “mentoring” although discipling is a more spiritual concept, focused on pointing the person to God rather than to your take on the world. There are amazing things about what is going on there like how un-institutionalized it all is. People are connecting with others on their own and developing their own methods to mature each other in Christ. Some are meeting for breakfast once a week, some are texting every morning or all day long, some call each other to share scripture with each other, others meet in a simi-small group setting for intense bonding. It’s not a program of our church, but more of a mandate and its working.

                Honestly its getting harder to pastor. People are getting the simple items taken care of in discipleship and they are maturing so God’s is asking them to do more. Because they are maturing the dreams are not their own, they aren’t fanciful or unrealistic but God-ordained. God pushes us and laziness (not relaxation but laziness) has no place in following God. People are acting.

                People are also praying, and I hope they do more of it. We have been talking about prayer for two weeks. The first week called me out. We asked everyone to ask, “How Can I Pray For You?” to anyone and everyone. I have asked friends at church (cake), people who call the church (easy), Wal-Mart greeter, Panera Bread cashier, School janitor, and three teacher assists. I have to blog more about the encounters. It’s an amazing thing to do to ask someone this question, genuinely care, and then pray for them. And people at the church are beginning to do it. People praying is always a good thing.

                Today we took our prayers deeper with the acronym (CAL)² Complement, Confess, Appreciate, Ask, Listen, and Live. It’s from an old prayer method called ACTS but so few people know what Supplication is that we adapted the acronoyms to something we Californians can remember. I have no idea what will happen if people began praying with the depth that CAL calls for. It’s simple but to sit and think about how great God is and how unworthy we are to approach him before we ask anything. I think that will produce such an amazing and deep prayer life.

                Please forgive me if my blogs don’t make since. I’m not editing them or thinking through too much of what I am writing but it’s just another attempt to develop the habit.

Realized in my last post that you may not be aware of what I am talking about. Tomorrow is our town hall meeting. You can find out more info about the event at newdaystockton.com

I'm pretty excited and nervous, going through all the things I need to do. Not a very good idea if one is trying to get some sleep.

My hopes for tomorrow - that New Day's generosity shines through, that some discover that the church exists, and that the canidates get heard and understood.

I am concerned about the format, some may not understand they needed to submit their questions beforehand. I'm also concerned that the rain will keep people away. And I'm concerned that I will flub up the introduction but that's in my late night thoughts.

It's going to be great tomorrow. Lord use this night to bring people closer to you.

Lots of flyers to hand out but saying good night to bad usage stats.

I handed out flyers today about our upcoming town hall meeting and expected to see some major hits on our church website. Sadly when I logged in I no hits, like the tracker had been keeping stats since early this month. It was intially depressing but then I realized it had to be wrong because I kept checking the website as I edited it and this program said there were no hits. So I feel a little bit better knowing the program isn't right.

So I paused writing and went back to check out the website. It's much better we got a lot more hits recently.

Evaluation means a lot in life. Knowing where we stand is essential in business, sports, medicine, politics. How are we doing? It's why I went looking for usuage statistics on the website, to know if the flyers are working.

But in life how many of us know where we really stand? We aren't outside observers, we don't have the niceness of knowing all the histories around us. How are we with each other? How are we at work? How are with God? Essential questions we have an almost impossible time answering. But Check Romans 8, it speaks to this issue.

Catch you later

Lots of flyers to hand out but saying good night to bad usage stats.

I handed out flyers today about our upcoming town hall meeting and expected to see some major hits on our church website. Sadly when I logged in I no hits, like the tracker had been keeping stats since early this month. It was intially depressing but then I realized it had to be wrong because I kept checking the website as I edited it and this program said there were no hits. So I feel a little bit better knowing the program isn't right.

So I paused writing and went back to check out the website. It's much better we got a lot more hits recently.

Evaluation means a lot in life. Knowing where we stand is essential in business, sports, medicine, politics. How are we doing? It's why I went looking for usuage statistics on the website, to know if the flyers are working.

But in life how many of us know where we really stand? We aren't outside observers, we don't have the niceness of knowing all the histories around us. How are we with each other? How are we at work? How are with God? Essential questions we have an almost impossible time answering. But Check Romans 8, it speaks to this issue.

Catch you later

Very cool weekend! I got to play softball, go to a friend's wedding reception, celebrate my wife's birthday and work the sound while James preached. In going to the wedding reception I saw my friend Jason Esley who I used to hang out with in college and is the one peer most responsible for shaping my understanding of God. It was just cool to be in his presence. Next to his table was my friend, John Lesley, who I learned a great deal about good pastoral care with him. Then on facebook, old high school friends found me out. Finally picking Alicia up from her house, I saw her neighbor from across the street, my ex-girlfriend from high school. It was definitly a circular weekend for me, with some nice reunions.