Thought of the Day: Dust

Most people are familiar with the Bible's teaching that Adam, the first human, was made from dust:

Then the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground. He breathed the breath of life into the man’s nostrils, and the man became a living person (Genesis 2:7)

Today I was reading Psalm 103 and had a thought when I got to this verse:

The LORD is like a father to his children, tender and compassionate to those who fear him. For he knows how weak we are, he remembers we are only dust (103:13-14)

My thought was just a simple reflection - that we really are dust! I've heard people say how stupid it sounds that we are made from the dust of the earth, because actually we are extremely complex. It's true, we are indeed extremely complex. That shows God in itself. But at the same time, in simple terms, we are also nothing but dust. That's what dust is - dead skin cells. Saying that we're dust shows that we're still very fragile, despite our complexity, which is what's being highlighted in this psalm.

Thought of the Day: Why Do We Die?

Today in class, my tutor raised an interesting issue. I'm not sure how it came about, other than we were studying the philosophy of mind. The conversation went like this:

Tutor: "did you know that scientists don't know why we die?"
Boy in class: "well if a truck hits you, that's how you die"
Tutor: "we don't know how we naturally die"

My tutor meant that if a person dies of 'natural causes', we don't know what that means or what that 'cause' was. It's something I had never thought of before, but it was an interesting point, especially coming from a person who doesn't think we have a soul and doesn't think that God exists. He admitted that there's something his 'all-knowing science' couldn't answer.

So why do we die of natural causes? What is that? What does it mean? Why are we mortal?

Well here's the answer, it's because we sin. Romans 6:23 'For the wages of sin is death' tells us that it is our sin that causes us to die. Death is the inevitable punishment for our sin. The second part of the verse gives us hope 'but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord'. Sin is the reason we die and we all sin. Science will never be able to tell us that. Christians still die because Christians still sin, but the difference is, with repentence and faith in the Saviour, Christians inherit everlasting life.

Did you know that Moses lived to be 120? Did you know that Abraham lived to be 175? It is believed Noah lived to be 950. Why? Because these were all righteous men of God. Remove the sin, as God does, and death can be postponed. All things are possible with God. Science would be inclined to disagree with the above statements about the ages of the prophets, but since science cannot find reasons for death, how could science prove these men did not live to be that long?

How great it is that God gives us the answers where science can't. We should always put our trust in Him.

Thought of the Day: The Implant

This post is one of my more off-topic posts, a post that isn't an answer to a question that I've been asked, nor is it a thought connected to philosophy or theology. It is however a thought linked to society and the theology of how men and women should be treated within a sexual relationship. It's kinda hard for me to write about in a way that isn't overly offensive and in a way that gets my views across but here it goes.

A few of my friends have had or have the implant and recently it's made me think a lot about my attitudes toward it. An impant (for those who aren't sure) is a small plastic tube that's inserted into a woman's upper arm. It releases a hormone to prevent pregnancy. (For the more technical and detailed explanation, click here). It can last up to 3 years.

I came to the conclusion that I think it's pretty disgusting. Not just the fact that it looks weird, you're taught it's bad to have foreign objects in your body and then you can have this thing that looks like a straw sewn into your arm. Not to mention how gross it looks to have it put in and taken out. But on top of all that, I think it affects the way guys treat girls.

I know it's a woman's own choice if she has an impant or not (and that has just made me think, I wonder how old you have to be? In the UK they'll do anything to stop teen pregnancies so I'm thinking a 13 year old could get one quite easily without family members needing to know). But it still makes me think of movies and things like 'A.I.', 'The Terminator' and 'I, Robot' where robots are editied, opened up, had bits added and removed to improve them or to stop them being a certain undesirable way. That's pretty much how I see girls with implants.

I realise at this point I may sound pretty offensive to some people, but it's how I honestly feel. Even if you're in a loving, serious, long-term relationship, or even in a marriage, it seems to me like you've been edited to be more desirable or more convenient for a man. You can be used for sexual purposes without the unsatisfactory result of becoming pregant. You've been tailor made for a man's selfish purposes. If you chose to have it because you don't want to get pregant, I still feel like it's the same thing. You may have initially chosen to do that for your reasons, but you've still set yourself up to be more convenient for a man.

I'm not particularly feminist either, I don't care if men want to claim they're stronger, or that they can handle bigger cars, but I do care if men think they can mistreat women purely because they're men. I also have a problem with women who encourage men to do this, either by being hookers, dressing like they're in a porn movie when they're going to class, etc. The implant I feel, inadvertantly encourages men to see women as sex objects, because it's more risk free for them.

The girl is the one who has to go to the doctor, have a minor surgery, have a foreign object in her body, have her hormones messed up for 9 months, have her cycle messed up for 3 years and then have another minor surgery to either change it or have it taken out. Meanwhile the guy can just carry on with life and worry about nothing when it comes to having sex. I don't really think that's fair.

So to conclude, I think the implant is not only disgusting and unnecessary, but I think it enables men to further objectify women. I for one will NEVER be putting one in my body, mark my words ;)

Thought of the Day: Everyday Miracles

Someone asked me recently if God performs miracles today. I believe he does, but not in the same way as he used to. We don't have Jesus on Earth today, so we see less of people being healed on the spot and with medical advances we don't have as many people in need of healing in everyday life, e.g. leprosy. We don't need God to part the Red Sea. However, God is still perfectly capable of healing and he still does, but that is just one type of miracle He performs. I have heard many stories of miracles performed today, including healings.

But consider this: before we complain about God not doing what we want, not saving people, not healing people, not protecting people, think about just how many times in a day God does do these things. For example, a driver loses control of his car momentarily and mounts the curb. Maybe God intervened by stopping pedestrians who would have been walking on that path at that time from going outside. That would be God protecting people, but who would ever know this was the case?

I think situations like this are examples of small miracles from God that could be happening all the time, but unless someone realises it, they go unnoticed, leaving people to assume that God is no longer looking out for us and performing miracles. And that's before we even start to think about bigger miracles God performs ;)

Thought of the Day: Keeping Your Focus on God

This is a little bit of a 2-in-1 post. I'm going to write about keeping your focus on God in your day to day life, but also about choosing hobbies and activities that please God. So here goes.

My university's Athletic Union (AU) announced today details on the annual Sports Fair. It reminded me of how much I want to dance regularly. Last year, I wanted to join the dance team in the AU, but one of my lecturers chose not to follow the 'Free Wednesday Afternoons from Classes' policy and I had class during and after dance meets. I saw cheerleading being promoted and thought, 'that seems cool, they add dance with some cheer, I'll do that instead. I can make the training sessions'. So I paid my membership and joined the cheerleading squad.

This is the part where choosing hobbies that please God comes into it. Everyone knows the stereotype of the cheerleader: hot, popular, slutty, fun-loving, you know how it is. I ignored that when I joined. Well, turns out that stereotype was half right in my squad. I spoke to many girls who'd been in the squad for over a year, who loved to tell me about all the nights they got smashed (with the squad), the number of times they woke up naked next to a guy whose name they couldn't remember and warned me that ANYTHING that happened between me and one of the footballers we cheered for, would spread like wild fire between the football team and the squad. That wasn't a great start to the social side.

When I went out on a social with the cheerleaders (it was kinda mandatory after our first dance performance was in a bar) I got quite a shock. Firstly, I was the only one showing no interest in getting hammered. Secondly, it was a mixed social with the football team, who seemed to think (since I was a cheerleader) it wouldn't take much for me to end up going home with them and that I also didn't mind if they tried to touch me. Well I wasn't 'game' for either. I was also one of about 3 cheerleaders who were wearing dressings that did cover out hineys. Even our coach for body conditioning was drunk, stumbling around, falling all over the place, shouting swear words. Great example! That was the first and last cheer social I attended.

People assumed that because I was a cheerleader, I was an easy, retarded, gossipy, slut who enjoyed getting drunk and sleeping around. Well I wasn't, I'm not and I won't be. People wouldn't talk to me as much because I wouldn't go on the socials (for the above reasons). At that point I thought "why am I doing this?" Cheer was very serious business, you had to attend 8 hours training a week (2 gym, 2 dance, 2 cheer and 2 stunt) plus attend games more or less every Sunday. Which involved catching a bus circa 8am, being in the freezing cold for the game for 4 hours (warm up, entertaining the crowd and cheering for the team) and not getting home again until circa 10pm every time.

More effort and more of my time was going into cheerleading than to God and for what? To be considered stupid and promiscuous? To be shunned because I wouldn't do what they did. Even some of my flatmates would ask "if you're a Christian, why are you cheerleading? Is that allowed?"

1 Peter 2:12 - Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.

Ephesians 5:8 - For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light.

If you can cheer without all this negativity, I guess you could do it, but for me personally I felt like it was seriously interfering with my faith. I didn't have enough time for God and I couldn't stand the reputation I was bringing upon myself, even when I knew and so did my friends that it was wrong. After 3 months in the squad, I quit.

Moving more onto keeping your focus on God, by all means have a hobby, an activity that you enjoy. But don't let it consume you. Some girls on the squad would live and breathe cheerleading. If they weren't at a game all day, in class or in their 8 hours training, they were watching football games, practicing even more in their free time, or going to games. Their lives revolved around it and they had no outside interests or any other hobbies. They're focus and happiness came entirely from cheerleading. Our worth and focus should not be completely invested in a hobby, especially one that isn't viewed as something Godly. (I thought cheer gave me a bad rep, but recently one of my 'Christian' classmates decided she would start poledancing classes. I think that's worse).

Colossians 3:1-3 - Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God

My plan this year is to do pure dance. Now I have Wednesday afternoons off, I could join the dance team in the AU. But I don't think I will. I don't want to be forced into making the team my everything. I need to find a balance. This summer I went to dance classes at home that were fun and I learnt new stuff. But there was no obligation to come every single week, no strict competitions and you could come for 1 hour a week or 4. There was no pressure. It was great because it was everything I wanted from dance, but allowed me to keep my focus where it belongs. I will try to find a place to continue this at university, otherwise I will have to surrender dance. God doesn't want you not to have interests and do activities, but He does request that He comes first and I agree.

Thought of the Day: Bad Churches

I recently spoke to a couple of friends about what initially drew me to attending Quaker meeting. The simple reason is, I had been to many different types of churches including Methodist, Evangelical and Anglican and I found many examples of very un-Christian behaviour. To give credit where credit is due, I did not find this in the Methodist church I attended and the Anglican church I attended I have heard has improved since.

Some people don't understand what I mean by this. In the Bible we are warned of those in Church authority who are not actually Godly: "And now I make one more appeal, my dear brothers and sisters. Watch out for people who cause divisions and upset people’s faith by teaching things contrary to what you have been taught. Stay away from them. Such people are not serving Christ our Lord; they are serving their own personal interests. By smooth talk and glowing words they deceive innocent people" - Romans 16:17-18 (NLT)

In my situation, I heard one pastor speak who said "all Christians need to turn away from sin. This means, they stop sinning for good". Well, that would make us perfect and no human (besides Jesus) is, was or will ever be perfect. Hence our need for salvation. Maybe he didn't realise the implications of his words, but if I can pick up on that and I'm not theologically trained, I think he needs to go back to Bible college before his whole congregation get the wrong idea. Another church told me that I had to be baptised in order to receive salvation and holy communion. Um, that isn't taught in the Bible either my friend.

In another church, I saw youth being denied access to the childrens and teens youth group and Bible study classes unless they could pay £2. The leader of these groups was stood in the doorway of the church bouncer-style, accepting the money and moving aside for those who paid and turning away those who couldn't. Since when did church become an elite group for those who can pay their way? I was shocked. Later on this youth leader left the church and his wife and 2 sons, for a younger female from the congregation, whom he confessed to having an affair with for circa 2 years. And this man leads Christian youth?

The Bible did warn us that in some cases these incidents would happen. God is perfect, his followers are not. More recently I have heard of churches lean more towards cult-like teachings. Make no mistake, the Quaker meeting I attend is very Godly, with almost all its members still staying true to the Christian faith. Talking to them, they are there for the same reasons as me. They also have had bad church experiences in places that don't teach the Gospel correctly.

On a side note: these Christian Quaker meetings are sometimes going by the name of 'Friends Church' now to show the reunion between Quakerism and Christianity. This is like Quakerism was back in the days of its foundation, as opposed to more recent times when some Quakers have missed the mark in trying to be accepting and pacifistic, forfeiting somewhat on their Christianity.

So if you have had a bad church experience also, I'm not telling you to run to the nearest Quaker meeting! If they're more post-modern and liberal then that will not help either. I'm encouraging you instead to check out this article by Focus on the Family about how to overcome your bad church experience. I certainly found it very useful. Good luck in finding your new Christian church home!