Profound and Sometimes Preposterous Ponderings of Pete

"If I could work my will," said Scrooge indignantly, "Every idiot who goes about with 'Merry Christmas' on his lips, should be boiled with his own pudding, and buried with a stake of holly through his heart. He should!" - A Christmas Carol  by Charles Dickens Honestly,  I have been feeling a little Scroogey lately myself. We have been under extreme stress and I do not have much "Christmas Spirit."  I know I have posted, and I heartily stand by, that Jesus Christ is the reason etc.etc.   But my family, especially my younger ones (grandkids included)  need me to be jolly.  So I suck it up, sing some yuletide carols, spread a little cheer, and pray that God can change my attitude enough so that it does not show to them.  Not that God would or should change it.  He did so much by coming here in the first place and really I don't think His birthday is all that important to him.  So all those Christmas miracles that we hear about or legend has gen

My heart is truly breaking for those folks in Connecticut.  How horrible!!  My first thought was for all the families!  His too.  The idiotic press published his brother's name as the shooter nationally.  There needs to be an addendum t o freedom of the press that should state that the freedom is there in as much as they report responsibly.  Anyway, I know the questions are God why did this happen?  Why did you do this God?  How can you let this happen? God did not do this.  God gave man the free will and man chose to do this.  You can't have the freedom to choose or not choose God and then blame Him for not controlling you when you act evil.  God is a just and loving and merciful God.  He has given us this freedom but that freedom comes with choices and responsibilities whether we believe it or not. So what do we do when tragedy strikes? Because it does.  Those of us who believe fall to our knees.  We pray for the fallen and the families they have effected.  We pray for t

Ever find your self drowning in a sea of overwhelming stress?  That stress can come from grief, financial woes, pain, worry, anxiety etc.  Whatever trial you are facing is just way to big for you to handle. You pray.  You beg God.  You look everywhere, try everything ,work extremely hard, but still there is no end in sight, no solution.  You get to the point where you are so tired that you just start to feel maybe it is time to just let go and sink.  You're treading water but your arms are tired and your legs ache.  You are keeping your face above water but barely.  It is like when you see in the movies the hero or maybe the villain is trapped inside the cave, or ship, or some enclosed area and the water keeps rising.  The lights go out and only your eyes nose and mouth are above water but the ceiling is inches away and the water is still rising.  You know the scenes I am talking about.  Many of you know this feeling regardless of the source of the trial.  Suddenly you get a littl

I did something today that I have not been able to do since Rachael's accident.  I listened to the Cinderella song by Steven Curtis Chapman.  Yes the tears came.  I was able to listen all the way.  Do I still miss my little girl?  Terribly!  This is the 4th Christmas since her death.  It still hurts.  But I was able to listen to the words of the song.  I have danced with all my little girls. Unabashedly.  I will continue to dance with them and they will marry men who will dance with their little girls.  My sons will also dance with their little girls.  Someday, I will dance with Rachael again.  She just has a much better partner now. 

In church today there was a graphic on the big screen. It was a beautiful silvery cross that was elevated and slowly spinning.  It really got me thinking.  The original cross was an instrument of torture, punishment, and death reserved for the most heinous crimes.  There was nothing beautiful about it. But then God, the perfect father, creator, and judge decide to have mercy on us and took our places on that cross.  He took MY place on that cross.  His blood washed it clean.  Those awful pieces of wood became the symbol of freedom, redemption, eternal life, peace with God, grace, and mercy for millions of people.  For me. I wear a cross.  I keep it inside my shirt next to my heart.  It is a plain one.  Stainless steel with a simple rosewood inlay.  I wear it to remind me who I am and what has been done for me.  The reason why I wear it inside is because for years crosses became a fashionable "bling" statement and were worn as such.  I saw people wearing their overly gilded

I can put up with all the commercialization.  The greed.  The avarice.  The whining and complaining. The idiots who claim that Christmas is not a Christian holiday and yadda yadda blah blah blah.  The thing I really hate however, is the "Have to's!"  You know what I mean.  The have to buy a gift for the Secret Santa at work.  The have to get a gift for the neighbors.  The have to get a gift because ______ .  You fill in the blanks.  The free gift of salvation is so pure, so holy and given in true love.  God did not have to be born a man.  He did not have to die for us.  He had no obligation to us at all. So when people tell me I have to buy this gift (especially when I am having trouble getting gifts for those I love) because of some obscure obligation, it rankles me.  Let me give a gift without strings or without obligation.  I don't mind giving gifts to unknown people or people who will never even thank me or see me again.  Just don't tell me I have to do it be

The kids all did Black Friday shopping today (last night?).  Even Daniel and Katie did their own version (really cute)!  So I am driving back from the post office thinking that I should feel bad because Corinne and I have done absolutely no Christmas shopping. But I don't.  I am not in any "Seasonal Spirit" either.  The past several months have been really hard financially and we just don't have funds for Christmas.  I realized today that I am indifferent to that.  My kids are well aware how much we love and care for them and are old enough (well maybe not Ben) to know that things are really sparse this year and I don't feel ashamed or bad that I can't lavish gifts on them.  Maybe I should?  Does this make me an ogre?  A Scrooge?  Well you are all entitled to an opinion.  I don't care.  Christmas is a celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ.  When that day was is irrelevant.  Here is the crux.  I am just so glad that He was born!!  His birth and finally

10. Pumpkin Pie 9.Sucralose 8. My Truck 7. My Business 6. My House 5. Being born in the USA 4. My Church 3. My Family 2. My Wife and Kids 1. Jesus Christ

I watched 2 movies this past weekend.  The new Spiderman and Meet the Robinsons.  I enjoyed both.  As a kid I wanted to get bitten by a radioactive, spider, tiger, leopard, snake, whatever it took to become a superhero with animal-like super reflexes and senses (Uh-oh! Spidey senses tingling).  Well, I have no super powers and I am no super hero.  I also imagined myself to be a super inventor/scientist that would change the world with my amazing innovations!  Well, I did become a scientist and yes even a rocket scientist but I am never going to get a Nobel.  Now that they are giving those out for pseudo-science to people like Al Gore I am not sure that I would want one.  So I started wondering what have I become?  I am 52 years old, partially disabled, father of 12 and grandfather of almost 11.  Hmmm. In my quest for self undertstanding I took a spiritual gifts test and this how I scored as my top 5 gifts: 1. Writing 2. Teaching 3. (a tie) Exhortaion and Faith 4. Pastorin

I Cor 10:14 Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry. 15 I speak as to sensible people; judge for yourselves what I say. 16 The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? 17 Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread. 18 Consider the people of Israel:[d] are not those who eat the sacrifices participants in the altar? 19 What do I imply then? That food offered to idols is anything, or that an idol is anything? 20 No, I imply that what pagans sacrifice they offer to demons and not to God. I do not want you to be participants with demons. 21 You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons. 22 Shall we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than he? I know this is going to offend some, encourage others, and hopefully inspire some to seek Go

The pastor gets up and states, "Today's message will be from Proverbs 31."  75% of the congregation cringes.  Why?  Because 75% are women and the pastor is a man. Historically, this chapter has been used as a flagellant against women by men.  When I say historically, I am not talking 100-200 years.  I am talking about thousands of years. When I had just been saved by Grace, I was a single guy.  I came up against what many single Christian men lament  as "Why are all women looking for guys who are Jesus Christ?!  We can't measure up to that!"  This was my lament as well.  I did not know that the girls were all asking, "Why do all these guys expect us to be Prov 31 women?" Well, it has been many moons since then and I have been blessed by a Proverbs 31 woman! (Yes my love, I am at the city gates.  The virtual ones.)  I would say that she is indeed far closer to Proverbs 31 than I am to being Jesus Christ.  By many orders of magnitude!  I have, I

A Father's Heart A father's heart is made of steel, for discipline and even keel. A father's heart is made of stone, For hard lessons and setting bone. A father's heart is made to swell, when his children do so well. A father's heart gives great gifts, in so doing a child's burden lifts. But a father's heart can be rent, When seeing his child's last breath spent. While this tear is deep and burning, leaving his soul seared and yearning, his heavenly father provides the suture, that mends his heart for the future.

Yesterday I walked down a path with a family hat I thought I would not have to walk again.  Last year a 17 year old boy in our church was in an accident skateboarding.  His brain injuries were severe.  He has been in the hospital on life support since.  He looked like he was starting to improve but in August he had a Grand Mal seizure and after brain scans, MRI's etc., he was determined to be of no hope of recovery and that he was essentially going to have more seizures until it killed him.  This poor family had to face the choice that we had to face 4 years ago.  They chose to remove life support and allow him to go home to God.  Corinne and I spent yesterday with the family as their son, brother, cousin died.  It took a while. My heart was breaking for our friends as we stood with them, prayed with them, and comforted them as they walked this hard road. I don't know why I am posting this except that today I am numb. I don't need comforting.  I don't need to cry.

My daughter Rachael died 4 years ago today.  Am I still grieving?  Yep!  Will I ever stop?  Only when I see her again.  Am I mess?  Emotionally and spiritually, no.  So where am I?  Right here in Sandy, UT, USA, planet Earth, Milky Way galaxy, God's created universe in time. So how did we make it?  We had a saying, Cant' go over it, Can't go under it, Can't go around it, must go through it.  We did.  The saying, "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger," may or may not be true.  Am I stronger emotionally? Maybe.  Am I stronger spiritually?  Yes.  Am I stronger physically?  No.  It did almost kill me.  I used to think that dying of a broken heart was about the stupidest thing ever.  No longer.  Until your heart is truly broken, you can never know what that means. Am I rambling here?  Probably, but it is my blog and today I am not as focused as I have been. I know some people think that we should be over it by now and I forgive them.  They have no cl

Some time ago I started reading Confessions of St Augustine.  I could not believe how he went on and on about an apple he stole from a tree as a teenager.  In the grand scheme of things and compared to my own sins I thought it was a bit much.  I mean come on! It was just an apple for crying out loud!  I stopped reading it because I thought it was just a bit too over-pious.  I was an idiot. St. Augustine truly knew what it meant to grieve the Holy Spirit.  His spirit was so aligned with God's Spirit that the sin type was irrelevant.  I see gray and shades of gray.  God only sees black and white.  In other words, sin is sin.  St.  Augustine knew the condition of his heart when he sinned and he was appalled by the blackness of it.  Yes it was only stealing an apple.  But he truly understood that whether it is stealing an apple or lusting after a woman to whom you are not married, in God's eyes, there is no difference.  I have come to understand how much my own sin grieves the H

4 years ago my 12 year old daughter Rachael was hit by a car and died 2 weeks later in a coma.  Her brain suffered injuries similar to that of shaken baby syndrome.  I wrote this poem for her.  I have posted it in other places and some of you have read it before but here it is again: The Purple Princess by Pete Kligmann There was a purple princess who was her daddy's joy. She climbed the highest trees as fast as any boy. Those who got to know her found her love was true. She gave her life to Jesus, her friends, and family too. She loved to cook, and ride, and play. She had to read everyday. She wanted to be just like her mama, A midwife and mom to lots. She learned all about childbirth and babysat many tots. She often loved to sing out loud but rarely sang on key. Her love and praise of Jesus Christ was plain for all to see. Rachael, dear Rachael. I give you to your princely groom, but always remember in your daddy's heart, there remains an empty room.

This is an excerpt from Oswald Chambers (Hah!  You thought I was talking about Mr. Osbourne) , one of my favorite "Pastors of the Past"  Abide in Me . . . —John 15:4 In the matter of determination.  The Spirit of Jesus is put into me by way of the atonement by the Cross of Christ. I then have to build my thinking patiently to bring it into perfect harmony with my Lord. God will not make me think like Jesus— I have to do it myself. I have to bring “every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ” ( 2 Corinthians 10:5 ). “Abide in Me”— in intellectual matters, in money matters, in every one of the matters that make human life what it is. Our lives are not made up of only one neatly confined area. Am I preventing God from doing things in my circumstances by saying that it will only serve to hinder my fellowship with Him? How irrelevant and disrespectful that is! It does not matter what my circumstances are. I can be as much assured of abiding in Jesus in a

I have a Masters in Physical Chemistry.  That is the study of the physics in chemistry.  So what? I have a math minor.  So what? I have a patent for the stabilization of unstable fuels for a possible use as rocket fuel.  So what? I have run labs, I have saved labs, I have improved labs.  So what? The apostle Paul said he counted all of his achievements as rubbish compared to what he gained in Christ. Why has it taken so long for me to truly understand that?  I guess for all my intelligence and knowledge I really am no wiser than a 2 year old.  ROFLOL!! What matters?  This is what matters! I have eternal life.  Gift from Christ. I married a Prov. 31 woman (Corinne don't argue!).  Gift from Christ. I am the father to 12 children.  Gifts from Christ. I am the Grandfather to 11 children (so far).  Gifts from Christ. I have co-founded a national and soon to be international company.  Gift from Christ

Growing up I attended mainstream denominational protestant churches.  I hated most of the hymns and thought they were too solemn and often boring.  Of course, at that time, I was not saved.  As an adult, most of my saved life, I have attended mildly charismatic churches.  The worship is very upbeat, contemporary Christian music, full of praise with an outward show of love for God.  But every once in a while and old hymn sneaks in and I am amazed at how uninformed I was when I was unsaved.  The real cool thing is it is not the well known first verses that have the strongest meaning.  It is usually the later verses.  The most recent surprise in this fashion for me came through the song Come Thou Fount of Blessing.  What a cool song!  Here are the second and third verses of the song: Jesus sought me when a stranger, Wandering from the fold of God; He, to rescue me from danger, Interposed His precious blood; How His kindness yet pursues me Mortal tongue can never tell, Clothed in fles

I am reminded often of my unworthiness, but too often I have felt worthless.  They are not the same.  I can never and will never be worthy of God's gift of grace. The apostle Paul very clearly states this in all of his letters and very thoroughly in Roms 1- 7.  But here is the rub, this in no way means worthless!  Let's analyze this for a second.  The God who created the universe as well as us, loved us so much that he became one of us.  He underwent all the temptations we do, was rejected by us, and finally died under punishment reserved for those who committed the most heinous of crimes.  He did this because He thought we were worthless?!  I think not! He even calls us his craftsmanship or masterpiece in Eph 2:10. So when I feel worthless, it is like me saying that I am a better judge of worth than the God who created me!  Oy veh!  Sorry, I reverted to my Jewish roots.  This means that as a born again Christian, allowing myself to feel worthless, is an act of sinful pride!

I was soaking my kidneys and praying.  Yes, I pray in the bathtub, I also pray on the toilet and many other places which probably will offend some sensibilities.  God doesn't mind. As a matter-of-fact, He likes it.  He sometimes thinks it is funny that He gives me some of my best ideas in places and during situations that many would find quite awkward.  I digress.  Here is a little something that I believe has been revealed to me by God through his Holy Spirit who dwells within me. When Corinne and I first were married we had a small debate on which was the first sin.  She said selfishness and I said pride.  I have come to learn that pride and selfishness are 2 sides of the same coin.  From that sin sprung lust.  Most of us think that lust refers to sexual feelings but that is only a part.   Lust is the strong and often overwhelming desire to possess and or control that which does not belong to you or that, over which, you have no authority. OK.  So since it is the first to ar

If I could go back in time and visit the younger me this is what I would say (there is no specific order here): Stay in school, I know it is not fun but do it anyway. Stay away from alcohol. In spite of what you know for sure what they have done, your friends know nothing about sex and even less about women. You know far less than you think you know. Life is short and long. God is real and he does indeed love you and know what is best for you. People do and will fail you. Forgive them anyway. Forgive yourself. Stay away from sugar. Stay away from porn. You are not a loser. Don't be so angry. Even though nice guys finish last, keep being a nice guy.  The bad boy thing doesn't work for you. Listen long, speak short. The Bible is true. Place your faith in Jesus Christ, not in people. Science fiction and fantasy is exactly that and not possible. Women are people, not objects. Love is not a feeling. You need to look beyond how you feel. You and your body are N

Last week, I returned from the Phillipines.  I was there for my son's wedding.  The Filipino people are a wonderful, gracious, and beautiful people and my stay there was a dream. Our stay at the resort for the wedding was luxuriant.  My son's in-laws, the Soriano family, welcomed my wife , my other son, Nick, and myself into their home and included us into their family even though we were strangers.  Again it was living a dream come true and this part of my trip was a check-off on my bucket list. The trip was so wonderful that I have hesitated to even post this but my heart was stung deeply and I have to make mention.  When we were in the city of Manila, we were stopped at a traffic light and a 3 year old little girl knocked on our car window.  She was naked from the waist down and was begging for money.  We were told before hand that something like this might happen and that we should not give money because it only hurts them more.  That they are being pimped out by adults

10. Hammer, car door, or other large object on fingers. 9. Sugar in a cavity that needs root canal. 8. Kidney stones 7. Winning 40 million dollars 6.  The IRS taking 95% of those winnings. 5. A solid hit in the groin. 4. Wife leaving him. 3. Conviction of sin 2. Wife dying 1. Child dying. My experience includes #'s 10, 9, 8, 5,3, and 1.  

The weather is getting warmer and many people are breaking out their Spring/Summer clothing.  Every year I cringe at the things I see so here is my list. 10.  The smell of coconut oil tanning lotion - nauseating 9. Wearing lingerie as outer wear. 8. Guys who wear shorts with black nylon socks and black leather shoes. 7. 12 -13 year old girls in string bikinis. Parents, do your job!! 6. Guys in ankle socks. 5. Shorts with white socks and sandals. 4. Women over 40 wearing tube tops.  Ladies please grow up! 3. Athletic guys who wear loose shorts and no underwear that like to take stances which reveal things best left hidden. 2. Guys in flip-flops.  I know you guys who wear them think its cool.  Its not!  No one wants to see your ugly man feet! And the number 1 is (drum roll please)  men in Euro-style Speedos.  I don't think I need to expound.

So I already said my piece on Christmas (see previous posts) now I need to talk about Easter.  It is the anglicized form of the pagan god Oster (sorry dad I can't find an umlaut).  Not the food processor! LOL! The Germanic god of fertility and new life.  So, Christians high-jacked that celebration to coincide with the celebration of Christ's death and resurrection.  I admit I love the dying of eggs, and the hunts, and the chocolate etc.  Sorry folks but I hate the peeps.  You know what I mean!  None of which has anything to do with the horrible way in which Christ died for me.  Am I bad Christian for enjoying this? Maybe.  Is that between me and God?  Absolutely.  In my life and in that of my family, does this fun little nothing detract or shadow the reality that we are sinners desperately needing forgiveness and grace?  Absolutely not!  My love for Jesus Christ is deepening daily.  My conviction for being a sinner drives me to my knees and tears almost everyday.  I know that I

Wow!  Lots of movies about superheroes, gods and demi-gods etc. etc.  All of these are based in fantasy.  I admit that I have fun watching them.  There is a danger, however, in taking them seriously.  Wishing and fantasizing that you are someone whom you are not nor whom you will ever be is a waste of time and energy.  I know because I have wasted plenty of time and energy in that endeavor.  So how does the title of this blog fit in? Well, I believe that the Holy Bible is true.  Oh I know that many who read this will say, "Yeah, but I don't." or "Well you are deluded."  These are the nice things that are and will be stated.  That is OK.  I am not asking anyone to believe anything just because I say so or because I post it here.  I am just stating what I believe.  The Bible states that my belief in Jesus Christ's death and resurrection for the salvation of my sins grants me eternal life.  I believe that Jesus Christ whom is God, took the form of man and paid

Maybe the word should be passionate.  When a born-again Christian explains their faith/belief to a family member or friend it is not because we want to push our "religion" on to them.  Unfortunately, sometimes it comes off that way and sometimes we become so passionate about it we become insensitive.  Please forgive us for that insensitivity.  We have accepted a gift of freedom from our bondage to sin.  We have come to realize that there was nothing we could possibly do ourselves to get that freedom.  We have been shown that through Jesus Christ we gain that freedom and along with that freedom we have access to God and eternal life, forever.  We also know what the alternative to that is, everlasting torment in hell. We love our friends and families and we do not want that to happen to them so we passionately witness to them.  Here is where we are mistaken at times in our process, we make the assumption that just because we believe you should believe too.  That is what we want

Every year my brothers-in-law, my oldest son, and our daughters attend the Valentine's Day Daddy Daughter dance.  This year, we missed it due to a scheduling mistake.  Almost devastating!  We recouped and are taking out our daughters tonight.  Not to a dance but to a dance performance.  All my girls are my princesses!  I want them to know it and if once in a while I can make them feel that way too, well the pleasure is mine!  There is a scene in the movie Courageous, where the dad does not dance with his little girl.  If you have seen the movie you know what I mean. If not, see it!  Dads, your daughter(s) do not care if you look more like a Marx brother than Patrick Swayze when you dance with them.  All they care is that their daddy sees them as being worthy of being danced with.  DANCE WITH HER!!!!  You never know when they won't be there anymore.  I am so glad that I got to dance with my Rachael when she was still here and that I got to dance with my Manda before she got too

Ever notice that non-Christians hold Christians to higher standard than themselves?  Why?  We never claim to be perfect.  As a matter-of-fact we are Christian because we know very well how imperfect we are and so have realized how much and to what extent we need forgiveness.  Still, when a Christian screws up, as EVERYONE does, a non-Christian points accusing fingers and says "I thought you are Christian, how could you do that?"  Answer, "Same way as you." We are fallen as is everyone else. The only difference is that we are aware of it.  It does not makes us any better nor does it make us any worse.  God is judge.  Not us nor anyone else.  Does that mean that Christians are free from being judgmental.  Unfortunately , no.  Maybe, the fault lies in outspoken folks of the past who claimed to be better because of their beliefs?  If so, they were wrong as well.  We are not better, but from our standpoint, because we have accepted and received God's free gift of m

Many people over the years have told me that mankind is basically good and that evil is just an aberration that occurs from time-to-time in everyone and sometimes overwhelms and takes control over some. I don't put on any pretenses about what I believe and I believe that the Holy Bible is the truth not just a truth.  The Bible teaches us that mankind is fallen and is basically evil.  I concur. Let's look at the human race and put this is uncomplicated terms. If mankind was basically good, why has not the human race improved?  Yes, we have incredible, medical, and scientific advances that have made life for many easier.  I would not trade living 100 years ago for living today.  But why have we not improved?  Slavery still exists.  We not only can kill each other in mass quantities, but the after effects destroy the land in which we live and those not killed initially die slowly in a manner equivalent and in some ways more grotesque than those tortured to death during the

In our daily family Bible study today, we finished the book of Titus.  We had a long discussion about divisiveness ( Titus 3:    9  But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless.  10  Warn a divisive person once, and then warn him a second time. After that, have nothing to do with him.  11  You may be sure that such a man is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned. )    and what that meant.  Everyone had something to say.  Somethings were about work experiences, some about family experiences, some about experiences with friends, and some about experiences at churches.  We talked about how people who have been gifted with leadership qualities can either use or abuse those gifts.  How gossip in any form is so damaging.  We talked about how it can start with just a simple annoyance.  That the simple annoyance, real or perceived, when gossipped can destroy a group, church, or a family.  That when faced

My Aunt Emma died today.  Her name was Emma Kligmann Nocito. She was the youngest of her group.  The oldest was my Uncle Albert Reisdorf, next was my Uncle Michael Reisdorf who went to war (WWII) and never returned and was never found, then my Dad, Gottfried Kligmann who died in 1996, his sister my Aunt Bertha Kligmann Vick, then his brother Uncle Samuel Kligmann.  All are no longer with us. My Uncle Samuel came to the US from East Germany with special permission in 1976 (before the wall came down).  It was the first time my father had seen him in 31 years.  2 years later he came back with my Aunt Bertha.  That was the only time I ever saw either. My Aunt Emma I knew well and have many fond memories of her.  She was generous, very strong willed, intelligent, and a good business woman.  She was also a fantastic cook.  She could cook Italian better than most Italians.  She loved to party too!  She traveled a lot with her husband, my Uncle Dominic, whom was know to us as Uncle Mimmi.

Have you ever read the story of Elijah the prophet of God in the Bible?  One of the biggest events is described when Elijah, before the nation of Israel who took to devil (Baal) worshiping, proved God's might and power over that of Baal.  He set up 2 altars of wood and had them soaked with water.  He then told the priests of Baal to have their god light the fire.  Nothing happened.  Elijah asked God (the real one) to light the fire and He did.  I left out some details.  You can get the whole story in the Bible 1 Kings 18.  Anyway after that Elijah slew ~400 of the Baal priests.  Now the queen, Jezebel, who was a practicing witch of black magic as well as a devil-worshiper (sort of redundant), got pretty mad about it.  She had been denounced many times by Elijah and had many of God's prophets executed.  She puts a contract out on Elijah (or puts a hit on him).  Elijah got scared and ran away.  I used to think, what is wrong with Elijah?  He just was a conduit for God's amazi

I am so angry!!!  I have always been in favor of tough borders and tough immigration but ICE really blew it today!!  They are so busy making sure that those who are trying to do it right are dotting every i and crossing every t that hundreds of illegals toting all kinds of drugs and weapons get missed coming across the border.  I wrote this letter topday because a good friend of mine, Jorge Barahona, a good man., a devout husband and father, and sincere Christian was accosted and detained by officers of ICE in front of his family.  I have reposted on FB the video his wife made.  Please pray for this family!  Below is a letter I sent to Sens. Orin Hatch and Mike Lee. Dear Mr. Hatch, I have long supported tough immigration and the need for greater border safety; however, today, ICE overstepped their boundaries.  A good friend of mine, Jorge Barahona, who has been trying to get citizenship here for the past 10 years, has been here legally and has been jumping through all of the hoops

Who do I like for 2012 Presidential Election? Let's start with who would be my #1 choice.  Sarah Palin - I don't think she is running, too bad. Let's look at the possibles from the Republican Party: Mitt Romney - he looks sharp, but he was governor of one of the most liberal states in the union - and this is a bad notch for me against him.  BTW, his faith base has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with it. Newt Gringrich - I really think he is sharp and has good politics but 3 marriages brings serious doubt to me about his ability to commit.  As a leader of the country, if his own house is unstable... Ron Paul - a little out there, but he sticks with a conservative ideas of which I support.  Has a strong grass roots following.  He bears strong watching. Rick Santorum - started out with good conservative views and voting but when the crunch was on he supported a liberal RINO over a true conservative. John Huntsman - does not have a strong enough following and I am not s

We all like to make New Year's resolutions.  But before I can, I need a list of what to work on what to leave alone (ie If it ain't broke don't fix it!). Dislikes 10. I am physically impaired and I don't know if it is permanent 9. I am not as sharp as I used to be. 8. The causes of impairments previously mentioned has severely effected my short term memory 7. I am not as funny as I thought I was. 6. I have a disabling fear of heights (more to the point of ladders) 5. I am not fond of bugs (spiders are OK) but I admire their purposes 4. I hate financial matters and the stress they bring me. 3. I get angry too quickly 2. I am extraordinarily selfish 1. I lack so much faith even after God has proven to be faithful to me time and time again Likes 10. I am not as fat as I used to be. 9.  I have a good imagination 8. I still have an above average intelligence 7. I love to laugh and am first in line to laugh at myself 6. I am not judgemental. 5. Regard