Monday, February 27, 2006

The Litte Things

Over the weekend, there were two things that made me observe the Master design in nature. On both occasions I was riding in the car with Bob. On Saturday, we were talking about bees. It actually came from driving by a sign that said something about "the birds and the bees." Isn't it amazing that the flowers and bees have a symbiotic relationship? The bees get nectar from the flowers to make honey. (They are so good at making honey - they make enough for us to steal from them.) Then the bees inadvertently pick up pollen from the flowers and carry it to the next flower. I'm no horticulturist, but from what I understand, cross-pollination is an important job for these little guys. Things like that don't just happen. God designed it.

The other "little thing" Bob and I discussed about God's design in nature... I was peeling an orange for him while he was driving us to church. He commented that fruit is such an interesting creation. It comes in packages for us. "Take oranges for example," he said. "After you peel the package off, it divides into bite-sized pieces." We talked about other similar food - apples, bananas, nuts... The nuts are a little harder to open, but they are ideal for squirrels to store for the winter, and God gave the squirrels those teeth that are so good for nut opening. Remarkable.

Friday, February 10, 2006

Controversy is the Best Advertisement

Word of mouth is a powerful thing. It can spread like wildfire. If you're like me, when you heard about the cartoons that are offending the Muslim world, you wanted to see them - to decide for yourself, of course. I haven't seen any, though, because no one wants to print them.

Looking at the NY Times Bestseller List, I see that James Frey's "A Million Little Pieces" is No. 2 on the Paperback "Nonfiction" list. Apparently calling it nonfiction is a stretch. The author's poetic license was stretched to its limits. Apparently the truth was stretched beyond recognition. To give him the benefit of the doubt, maybe the drugs have fried his brain and altered his reality. That could also explain his choppy, incoherent writing style.

The break that launched Frey's book into popularity in the first place was being named as an Oprah's Book Club selection. That's instant bestseller right there. Even better, though, someone questioned the authenticity of a few of Frey's stories. Then came the Larry King interview and then the face to face confrontation with Oprah. You couldn't plan a publicity stunt better than that.

So if you ever write a book, direct a play or produce a movie, take my advice... start a few rumors about yourself or your production. Make sure they're juicy.

Wednesday, February 01, 2006

The Capable Crusader

Samuel Alito was sworn in as a Supreme Court justice yesterday. I'm happy about that decision because I like his viewpoint. Perhaps people like me are pinning their hopes on Alito, Roberts and the other conservative justices to finally declare abortion illegal.

My husband would say the abortion issue is one of my "crusades." My real "crusade" however, is turning the hearts of people toward Christ. He is the ultimate solution to any problem. Though I have a concern about politics and the decision-makers in our country, the real problems lie in the hearts of the people.

When I was a crisis pregnancy counselor, my mentor told me, "If you deal with the client's relationship with God and get that right, the abortion problem will solve itself. If she's right with God, she will choose life." That advice has stuck with me. It applies to all aspects of life. If Christ is in charge of my life, I will make the right decisions because I am in His will. Jim Elliot once said, "God always gives His best to those who leave the choice to Him."

What has happened to Americans that we would choose actions and lifestyles that oppose God? If the hearts of the people are turned away from Him, no legislation will repair it.

The book of Esther is a good example of what I'm trying to say. Mordecai's enemy, Haman, tricked the king into making a law to kill all the Jewish people on a specific day. Once "the law of the Medes and Persians" was written, it could not be reversed. To make a long story short - the Jews avoided being destroyed because the king made a follow-up law saying the Jews could defend themselves. When the people of the land knew the king didn't really want the Jews destroyed, they didn't try to kill them. (This became the Jewish holiday of Purim.)

For us, it doesn't matter what the law of the land is - we should be more concerned about the hearts and minds of the people. It would not matter if abortion is legal or illegal. If the people are following God, they will make the right choice. If Roe v. Wade is overturned, the blackmarket abortion business will flourish as the liquor business did during prohibition. Evil makes the most of any situation.
I saw an abortion doctor on Fox News last night. She is one of a handful who perform abortions in South Dakota, a very pro-life state. She has great fervor about her occupation. She is spiritually blind. I pray that she has a Damascus Road experience as did the abortion doctor who did an ultrasound of the procedure. The video of the ultrasound became a movie called The Silent Scream - the baby turned his head and "screamed" before he was destroyed. That doctor never performed another abortion.

Dear Lord, open the eyes of Americans.