Thanksgiving Hugs

I'm really not into themed post, but seeing as this is more of a journal of personal thoughts, I guess that is just another contradiction in my life.

We had thanksgiving with family. Not my immediate family but my wife's family. It great to be with them. It is such a bigger family then I'm accustomed too. We only had like 25 people this year and they acted like the house was empty.

It is funny because I'm at the point with Erin's family where I have been accepted. They know what I do for a living. They know who I root for in sports. They know I'm not a country boy like most of them. But what they don't know is whether or not to hug me. I'll be honest I'm a hugger. I go in for the real deal every chance I get. It never fails that I guess wrong too. Some people I'm not sure like hugs so I try to be respectful, but I would hug a random stranger if they'd let me. With Erin's family though I feel accepted and loved I'm still shakey on hugging status.

It is amazing to me that the church often works the same way. We do a great job of helping and knowing a few facts about people. We might even share a meal with people. But there is always a "hugging status" that we don't want to infringe upon. And then there are some people like from the town I'm from who come in hugging like junkies looking for hugs from who ever will awkwardly suffer through the experience.

I believe the ability to know when to give "hugs" comes from the spirit. I had a friend tell me we don't tap into that enough. I agree. What if we looked at people and ask God's spirit to give us a message for a certain relationship. What if we tapped into the light that needed to be shined on a person at that very moment of "to hug or not to hug." I love that Erin's family and church didn't give a prerequisite to joining the family except to come through the Father.

This might be a little more metaphorical than needed to be, but the holidays will do that to yah. I would like to look at people as an opportunity for the spirit to work and move and breathe.

God's Kingdom

Well the other night while my wife was here. I planned on making this profound political statement about how we need to re-think our yelling and haughty ways and revisit 1st Peter 2. It was going to talk about how the end all isn't coming if your guy doesn't get elected and that a lot of people feel like there isn't a moral candidate and they shouldn't be criticized for not voting. I was going to follow it up with a nice comment about how voting on one issue is still supporting the entire agenda of candidate.

And last but not least conclude with, "no matter who gets elected, it can't be as bad as Nero(emperor that burned Christians and others at the stake for fun). And God reminded them then, like he remind the religious leaders and zealots of his day that God's kingdom is not here on earth and if it was everyone would know. To sum it up with a contemplative phrase I would have put something like this..."How bout rather than yelling and screaming about the right choice; we be "as wise as serpents and as gentle as doves" or "humble and gentle bearing with one another in love" OR better yet like the man who "though hurled insults at him, tore his clothes, and spit on him and beat him, he said nothing"

Satan uses half truths and I feel, we fell for another one politically. "1Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind." (just cuz it's true doesn't make it less slanderous) Both sides get caught up in this venomous and angry arguing and last time I checked that verse ends with "of any kind."(small or large/true or untrue) As the Church and I mean that for all Christians not just a particular denomination, we have to give up this sense of entitlement. It is killing our country and it is killing our families. And it is killing our church.

So since my wife isn't here to proof this...I apologize ahead of time. and if you didn't like what I wrote then read these articles...I had these thoughts before I read them, but they say somethings that at least makes you think about things, even if you don't agree with them.

http://www.thetowntalk.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/200811060245/OPINION/811060307 and this one http://www.patrolmag.com/times/922/how-shall-we-then-vote