John Piper Calls It How It Is

I suppose being counter-cultural is fading out of style in today’s Christian world.  But there’s some things to which we should just say, “over my dead body.”

Of First Importance

Abortion, Racism, and Single-Issue Voting

Bryce and Emily’s contribution to this blog has certainly been a lot more frequent than my own over the past few months.  And the sad thing is I don’t have nearly the amount of excuses that they have.  They have a pretty full plate for sure.  So while we bid goodbye to the Hambletons, I’d certainly like to commit to posting more regularly.

Now, I know that the election is over, but I simply cannot close this can of worms yet.  The principle is just to serious.  And it’s quite sad how it does not seem to carry the weightiness that it ought with many Christians nowadays.  This post is not just going to be another rant, however (it is going to be that, but not that only).  I’m calling for some serious introspection from those who voted for Obama and from those who have serious problems with single-issue voting, especially when it comes to abortion.  Will you try to honestly ask yourself this question?

Here’s the question(s):  If Obama had been an outspoken racist, if his agenda was the exact same as it is in reality, except that he did not think that white people deserved the status and rights of personhood, and one of his goals was to fight to strip them of that status in order to justify racist legislations…would you have voted for him?

You see, we all become single issue voters once a certain line is crossed, and all of our lines are different.  Those whose lines are not crossed find it easy to look down upon those whose lines are crossed as “one issue voters,” as people who don’t see the big picture.

I would hope that all of you would answer a resounding “no” to that question, and thankfully, Obama is probably the farthest thing from a racist (at least when it comes to skin color) there is.

Here’s another question that I would appreciate just as much honesty in answering:  Why is the racism line drawn so much farther away from the abortion line?  In other words, whats the difference?  Both principles involve the de-personalizing of a people group that interferes with our tightly held ideologies.  They both stem from the same root.  It’s sad to say, but we’ve gotten used to abortion, the principle of it.  Slavery has been illegal for a long time, segregation is a thing of the past, and so it’s easy to be so horrified at something so obviously horrifying.  But where’s the horror when it comes to abortion?  Shouldn’t these lines be drawn in the same place?

Farewell

Anyone who has followed this blog over the last 2 months since our daughter has been born has surely noticed that there hasn’t been a lot going on over here. Emily and I have decided to stop doing the blog thing for a while. We are too busy so this is our last post. Its been fun. 

God bless

With the help of the Lord…

My curiosity was pricked by Genesis 4:1 in which Eve gives birth to Cain and then says, “With the help of the Lord I have brought forth man.”  How exactly did the Lord help her though her pregnancy and childbrith? What did she experience? These questions played a roll in my decision to give birth to Piper without any pain medication. I wanted the birth to be natural to see if I would find any insight to what Eve was talking about (in addition to avoiding complications sometimes caused by pain medicine).

While I’ll never know exactly how the Lord helped Eve, I do know that He is a VERY present help in childbirth. Throughout the delivery Bryce would read scriptures and I would listen to hymns. I was reminded of so many awesome things about the Lord and I could sense that He was working mightily to help me. Scripture became so sweet to me and I clinged to it as contractions got difficult.

Overall, I would say I learned two main things about the Lord through childbirth… The Lord is merciful and the Lord is incredibly loving.

The mercy of the Lord was revealed to me mostly during the breaks between contractions. Pain during childbirth is the curse put on women because of Eve’s sin. Throughout the contractions I thought to myself, “This pain is what human kind deserves.” I realized that the pain I was in was an outpouring of God’s wrath against sin. BUT, even in the midst of that, God would give me breaks. He gave me rests in which I could catch my breath and regain my strength. That is incredible! I didn’t deserve those breaks. In fact, if God were a totally fair God, I should be suffering the pain of childbrith (or worse) all the time. God is such a merciful and loving God to provide grace for me to live a relatively pain-free life. I am so thankful for this!

Christ’s love was also heavily on my mind during the birth. I’m sure the pain that Christ suffered during the crucifixion was at least 10 times worse than childbirth. What is amazing about Christ’s suffering compared to the average man is that Christ didn’t deserve it. He lived sinlessly and yet he suffered like a sinner. He did this in order to provide grace. He suffered so much out of His abundant love. It really takes my breath away.

Overall, I am so thankful for the experience of childbirth. The Lord is so sweet. I cherish Him, and I bask in the light of His mercy and love.

Tim Coons Psalms Project

Tim Coons, a friend of mine and awesome musician from Colorado, is doing this awesome project. Every week he will pick a Psalm and write a song about it and post it on his website every Monday. Psalm one is now up and available for free download on his website. This guys is really talented and writes beautiful songs based on scriptures. I really recommend checking his music out.

Pro-Life Progess!

Great news… The pregnancy resource center that was in danger of being shut down (mentioned in this previous post) raised enough money to stay open! The PRC, which is locate right next to a planned parenthood, needed 130,000 dollars to remain open. They raised 131,00! I’m so thankful for God’s provision for this clinic and for the lives that were saved because of it. This is a huge victory.

BUT the work is far from over. In their recent news letter, the PRC included a list of needs and a list of prayer requests. The needs include baby hygiene products and food, medical supplies such as gloves and ultrasound gel, and office supplies. Let me know if you are interested in donating and I can point you in the right direction, or you can visit their website. Their prayer requests are mainly for wisdom, guidance, and health for staff memebers, God’s continued provision, and for the young women who are contemplating abortion.

Thanks for everyone’s help. Be encouraged by this!

Mass Murder Alert

50 Million dead since 1973. All in the name of “choice.”

Two Pro Life Events in Portland

First Event: Roe v. Wade Memorial Rally

Date: Sunday, January 18th, 2009

Location: Pioneer Courthouse Square, Portland, OR

Schedule: 2:00 to 3:00 P.M.

Second Event: “Come What May” showing:
Date: Thursday, January 22nd, 2009 – 35th anniversary of Roe v. Wade

Location:
Rolling Hills Community Church
3550 SW Borland Road • Tualatin, OR 97062

Schedule:
5:30 pm – The lobby is open for visiting display booths run by numerous
outstanding pro-life organizations, including Abort73.com

6:30 pm – The auditorium is open for a special panel discussion with the
makers of “Come What May”. (Director George Escobar of Virginia and local
actors Austin Kearney and Victoria Emmons)

7:00 pm – Begin showing Come What May, winner of the 2008 Redemptive
Storyteller Award.

8:40 pm – Distribute handouts written by award-winning author Randy Alcorn.
These include: 50 Ways to Help Unborn Babies and their Mothers,
Communicating the Prolife Message, and Biblical Perspectives on Unborn
Children.

This is an age-integrated family event. All our children have enjoyed the
movie and give it thumbs up. If you would normally hire a babysitter,
call them up and invite them to come as your guest.

Come What May PDX is a free event. Get your free ticket today at http://comewhatmaypdx.com.

Pacifism

I want to start a discussion on Christian Pacifism.

A while ago, John Piper wrote a blog post about Guns and Martyrdom. James White responded. Piper’s blog post was very pacifistic in nature. James White’s was not. You can read Piper’s blog post here, and James White’s response here.

I agree with John Piper on most things. However, I can’t help but disagree with him on this one. My position on the issue is a lot closer to White’s. I think the Bible has mandated that we protect those whose lives are being endangered by malicious people, and sometimes this involves using force, even lethal force. 

I would like to hear what other Christians think. Would you align yourself more with John Piper or James White? Is it ever okay to use violent force in situations of self-defense and defense of other innocent people? If you were at home and a criminal entered your home what would you do?

This is a complex issue. There are texts in the Bible that seem to support both sides of the argument. Lets hear what you think.