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Is murder OK as long as my taxes are lower?

Posted by Daryl Densford on October 18, 2012 in Christianity, Politics

I’m really surprised by some of the posts that I read, especially as we get closer to the elections.  My biggest surprise is from those who are Christians who say that they are voting for President Obama (or any other Democratic candidate).

My surprise is not because I think that President Obama (or any other Democratic) is a bad person. It’s not because of the color of their skin.  It’s not even because of any candidates’ faith (or lack of).

What surprises me the most about Christians who vote Democrat is that they seem to disregard what they are voting for and focus on who they are voting for.  What I mean is, it appears that some Christians just vote for the candidate without considering what that candidate or his/her party represents, and will seek to legislate if elected.

A primary example of one of these issues is abortion.  Most Christians (at least evangelicals) believe that abortion, the taking of an innocent life for the convenience of the mother, is murder.  The Christians who believe this also normally believe that murder is sin, as declared in the Bible. Thus, most Evangelical Christians would have no hesitation in saying that abortion is sin.

I doubt very seriously that any of my Christian friends would volunteer to work at an abortion clinic or otherwise lend their support directly to abortion.  But isn’t that what they are doing when they vote Democrat?  The Democratic platform clearly states that “women have a right to control their reproductive choices.”  Therefore, they will do everything that they can to keep abortion legal as well as increase access to, and government funding of abortion.  Therefore, a vote for the Democrats is a vote for abortion.  Said very crassly, a vote for the Democrats is a vote for murder.

Too harsh?  I don’t think so.

How can a Christian consciously vote for murder?  I think that it is because if they are considering what the party stands for, they make other issues a higher priority.  Like taxes, or the economy, or foreign policy.  We all have our own views on these issues and others. Many think that the Democrats will do better with some of them while the Republicans may do better with others.  But for those who think that the Democrats will do better, they place these issues above the issue of abortion.

So essentially if the economy or lower taxes are the most important issues for them, what they are saying is that to have more money in their pocket is more important than the lives of unborn children.  Does that seem right?

They will quickly counter, that if the economy is bad, or taxes are too high for low-income families, or (fill in the blank) then people will suffer.  True, but I did a Google search to see how many people die in the US annually of starvation.  What I found out was that the government doesn’t keep track of that figure because it’s so low.  How many die from abortion every year in the US? Nearly a million (or over a million depending on your source)!

So if I have to prioritize the most important issue, it seems clear that since more lives are lost to abortion than starvation in the US, abortion should be a higher priority than the economy or taxes.

But what about foreign policy? Republicans are more likely to involve the US in armed conflict and therefore more Americans will lose their lives in war.  OK, valid argument. But again let’s look at the numbers.  Since the beginning of the United States, approximately 2,757,196 Americans have died in major wars.  Since 1973, 54,559,615 Americans have died as a result of abortion.

Once again, if I have to prioritize the most important issue, it seems clear that since more lives are lost to abortion than war in the US, abortion should be the higher priority.

I could go on, but hopefully you get my point.  As Americans, we are generally very selfish and materialistic so will vote for the candidate who promises us more “stuff” while we close our eyes to the millions dying as a result of our vote.

What is my point?  Do I think that every Christian should vote Republican?  Absolutely not!  One of our freedoms as a Republic is the freedom to vote according to our conscious without intimidation or fear of reprisal.  What I would like to see, though, is more Christians seriously weighing the issues and getting their priorities straight.  We shouldn’t blindly vote for any party or candidate but we should closely examine what they stand for so that we can vote intelligently and with the right priorities.

So with less than a month left before the election, I encourage you to examine the candidates’ views on the important issues (Both President Obama’s and Governor Romney’s).  Look at the party platforms (both Democrat and Republican).  Spend some time in the Bible and in prayer. Consider what is most important.  Then vote what is right.

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Bible Versions & Death Threats

Posted by Daryl Densford on October 15, 2012 in Christianity, Politics

While trying to focus on preparing for class on Wednesday, within minutes of each other I read an e-mail from the National Association of Evangelicals and a post from the Voice of the Martyrs which stood in stark contrast and jarred me a bit.  First, the e-mail from the NAE.

It wasn’t a bad e-mail.  The title read, “New International Version Tops List.”  The title grabbed my attention for a number of reasons.  First, the Bible is my life.  I’m a Christian, a minister, a chaplain and a Bible student.  I live my life and vocation within the pages of the Bible.

Second, I really like the NIV.  I’m a Nazarene and prominent Nazarenes were on the editorial committee of the NIV.  It makes it feel more like “my church’s Bible” (though I realize that the Nazarenes involved were among many other scholars from many other denominations).

Third, the NIV is the Bible that I preach from.  I am one of those mentioned who have made the NIV top the list (though I generally study in the NASB).

Finally, I’m always interested in reading about Bible versions and translations.  I have in my library 85 or so Bibles (or pages of ancient Bibles) in 31 different versions and about a dozen different languages.  I don’t think that these even include my “every day” Bibles sitting around the house or the multiple Bibles that my family has.

My case may be a little extreme, but according to the American Bible Society, “On average, 85% of U.S. households own a Bible [and] the average amount of Bibles per household is 4.3.”

So, it was interesting to see that with 39% of the vote, the NIV was still at the top with the NASB coming in second with 20% (at least among NAE members).  Here it is for those of you who like pie:

Now for the post from The Voice of the Martyrs.  It read, “If the government finds out I am reading the Bible, I’m dead.”

I followed the link to a New York Times article and learned more about the North Korean woman who said this.  She is 52 years old and raises pigs.  In fact, “she wakes up each day at dawn to scavenge for edible greens, then returns home to tend the family’s pigs. Her other vocation, carried out in secret, is making homemade spirits, brewed from acorns and corn cobs, that she sells to wholesalers” but apparently it’s not enough, she has two sons who suffer from malnutrition.

There were three other North Koreans being interviewed along with this woman while they were in China.  According to the article, “they were all anxious about speaking out; the gulag awaits those who speak to journalists or Christian missionaries, they were warned during two-day orientations that preceded their departure.”  This is what we’ve come to expect in the West.  Those under repressive regimes don’t have the freedoms that we have, not the least of which is the freedom of speech.

It’s usually those four freedoms that President Franklin Roosevelt spoke about back in 1941 (and Norman Rockwell made famous through his art work) that get our attention:  freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom from want and freedom from fear. But have you considered that the freedom to read the Bible is restricted to the point that some people could be killed if they are caught?

So here I am with my 80 some odd Bibles, more than I could read, some I don’t use but for reference.  I carry one to school and to church -out in the open- without fear.  I read it whenever I like.

And there she is, fearful for even saying out loud, “if the government finds out I am reading the Bible, I’m dead.”

So, is this an issue for the Church or the State?  For Christians or politicians?  For the North Koreans or for Americans?  It would be easy for us to pawn the responsibility off on someone else. “What can I do?” we ask.  But who I see here is someone in need and every time I see someone in need, I think of the Parable of the Good Samaritan.  You know that story, don’t you?  Jesus told it to the expert in the law, who thought that he was doing everything right.  When Jesus told him to love his neighbor as himself, he seemingly tried to get out of it by asking who his neighbor is.  Jesus answered with the following story:

A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have’ (Luke 10:30-36, NIV).

In response to Jesus’ question, “who was the neighbor?” the expert in the law said it was the one who showed mercy.  I think that we can also flip that answer over without doing injustice to the text.  Since the one who showed mercy was a neighbor to the one in need, we could also say that the one in need was a neighbor to the one who showed mercy.  If one was a neighbor to the other, than the other is also a neighbor to the one.  I think that being a neighbor can be both the one in need and the one who meets the need.  “Neighbor” is a relationship that can include people without needs and those with needs; people with  needs and others who can help meet those needs.

What does this mean for us?  What I think it means is that woman in North Korea who could be killed for reading her Bible is our neighbor.  My neighbor.  Your neighbor.  How can we sit back with all of our freedoms and our Bibles while our neighbor lives in fear? How can we not be a neighbor to her?

Awareness is one thing (and an important thing) but we should do something, right?  But what exactly?

I’m not sure.

Some things, though, seem obvious, like prayer.  Others are more difficult, like giving financially to groups that try to help (like The Voice of the Martyrs or the Church of the Nazarene).

Some ideas that may come to your mind are downright dangerous . . . like actually going to a country, to a people who needs you.

I know, I’ve gone to meddling now.  But  like Hillel, a 1st century Jewish scholar said, “if not you, then who? If not now, then when?”

Maybe all God wants of you is prayer.

Or, maybe He also wants you to give.

But maybe, just maybe . . . He wants you to go.

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Abortion and October Baby

Posted by Daryl Densford on October 14, 2012 in Christianity, Family

This weekend I finally had the opportunity to watch October Baby.  If you haven’t seen it, it’s the story of a woman who lived through an abortion and in her late teens found out about it.  The movie follows her search for meaning and love as she tracks down her biological mother only to be rejected by her.  She finally winds up back in the arms of her adoptive parents who had loved and cared for her from the beginning of her life.

It’s a moving story and one that isn’t often told.  While I don’t think that it was overt in its anti-abortion stance, it certainly showed the pain and trouble that comes from abortion.  There are many scenes that bring a tear to the eye, but it’s a movie that needs to be seen as it realistically portrays the struggles involved both from the decision to abort a baby to the ambivalence of the abortion workers to the possible repercussions years later.

As I watched October Baby, several truths struck me that I feel are important to share.

1. Abortion is tragic.  Nearly 1.2 million babies lose their lives to abortion every year in the United States.  Worldwide, that number is about 42 million (http://theabortion survivors.com).  These are more than statistics, they are lives!

2. It takes more than having sex to be a parent. In the movie, there was some dialogue about the main character’s father.  This is the man who adopted the “failed abortion,” took care of her and loved her all of her life.  Let’s compare him to the man who had sex with the biological mother then disappeared.  Who would you say is her father? Human attachment comes more from the bond of love and caring through a life of ups and downs then from DNA.

3. Failed abortions put life in trash cans.  It was hard for me to find many statistics on the number of abortions that “failed” since a living baby following an abortion isn’t a positive statistic for those who advocate for abortions.  But according to one website I found whose links were nearly all obsolete due the age of the post, there could have been somewhere between 850 and 1800 failed abortions a year in the United States around 2005.  The majority of these living babies would have simply been left to die outside of their mother’s womb, or killed by one of the abortion workers.

4. There is always pain that comes from abortion, even if it’s only Gods.  There are opinions on both sides of the abortion debate as to whether there is any significant emotional harm that comes to a mother or father who aborts their baby.  We’ve all heard the testimonies of those who finally had to confront what they had done and allow God to help them get through it.  Even if the biological parents have no pain or remorse from their abortion, God still hears the silent cry of the baby who He placed in that womb. Knowing from Scripture that God values all of His creation -all of life- we can be assured that He feels pain and grieves over every child killed by abortion.

5. There is always someone who loves you and wants you.  I think this statement could apply to anyone.  As I watched the movie, I was thinking of the main character who wondered if she was really loved after finding out that she was the result of a failed abortion.  But as I sit here and write now, I realize that there are any number of people who feel lost and unloved.  Regardless of whether one is the survivor of a failed abortion, or lives with a parent who doesn’t seem to love them–they are loved.  There are people who if given the opportunity to know them would love them.  And ultimately, God created them so He loves them and gave His son for them.

6. There is forgiveness, hope, love and peace available after an abortion.  It doesn’t matter what role one may have had in an abortion:  the doctor or nurses who did the procedure, the mother who thought there was no other way out, the biological father who forced it on her, the parents who funded it . . . however someone was involved, they are not outside of the reach of God’s forgiveness.  While God hurts for the loss of life, He still loves those involved and wants to have a relationship with them.  When it seems that an abortion has wrecked their lives, God can bring healing and peace.   There is hope because there is a future.

7. Finally, that child who was aborted is now in the eternal presence of God.  Having been a life from conception, who God saw and knew, when that baby’s life was taken from it, God received her or him into His loving arms to comfort that child forevermore.

If you are pregnant and you think that abortion is your only answer, you can call the National Life center at 800-848-5683 or the Option Line at 800-712-4357 (or visit their website).  You can also visit Care Net or Pregnancy Resource Center to find a local Pregnancy Care Center near you.  For information about the possibility of adoption visit Bethany Christian Services or Christian Adoption Services.   If you survived an abortion, visit The Survivors Network.

The October Baby website also has many resources available to you.  For immediate help, you can go to this page.  For recovery resources, go here.  Look here for adoption resources.

If you’d like more information about abortion and the pro-life cause, visit the National Right to Life website.

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The Moving of the Holy Spirit in Worship

Posted by Daryl Densford on October 14, 2012 in Christianity, Music

My family has been attending the Lebanon (MO) Church of the Nazarene for nearly 2 years now, since I was transferred to Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri.  From the moment we first attended, we have found a warm welcome and now feel right at home with our new church family.  We are blessed by our new pastor who has been here about a year now, and very much enjoy the worship services and ministries of the church.  God often works through and in the worship services as our song leader is very sensitive to the moving of the Holy Spirit and often has an appropriate and encouraging word to share. The pastor is faithful to God’s leading and brings sermons that if not inspiring us, “piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow” (Hebrews 4:12, KJV).

Before becoming an Army chaplain, I pastored for about 10 years in civilian churches. As a pastor, I have always clung to Paul’s admonition about worship to the Corinthians, “Let all things be done decently and in order” (1 Corinthians 14:40, KJV). I told my music teams to stick to the order of service unless they were (very) certain that God wanted them to go in a different direction.  I would time out the elements of the service to ensure that everything was just right.  I would cringe when people said things about their services like, “our service was so good the pastor didn’t even get to preach!”  I’d want to shout out, “but preaching is part of worship!”

But sometimes, God wants to do something that isn’t in our order of service.

This was the case in my church this morning.

It started out like any other:  the opening hymn followed by the greeting and announcements by the pastor then another hymn.  But after this hymn, it started to veer off course (the place where I would begin to get nervous as a pastor!).  Our dear pastor’s wife got up to speak about how God had spoken to her over this past weekend at the “Come to the Fire” conference at Olivet Nazarene University.  While she admitted that she was not comfortable speaking to us from the platform, God spoke through her anyway.  Her words were meaningful and connected with us.  As she finished up, my wife got up to share as well (she, too, was at this conference).  If you know my wife, you know she would rather weed her garden than speak in front of a group of people; but as with our pastor’s wife, she allowed God to guide her words and they again connected with us.

The pastor, now realizing that God had other plans for the service, asked us to sing “Come, Holy Spirit” and invited us to respond as God led.  Several moved to the altar seeking God’s touch.  Following this prayer a humble and sincere young man got up and asked to speak.  He affirmed our pastor’s leadership and added that we were blessed as a church to have 3 other ministers in our congregation.  He invited all of them and their wives, and our pastor and his wife to the altar and prayed for them all.  Again, God spoke through his words and prayer and many were blessed.

Still, though, God wasn’t through working.

One of those ministers stood up to testify and spoke of the verse in Luke where Jesus admonished his disciples, “if you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (Luke 11:13, NIV).  He focused in on the “asking.”

This was confirmation to the pastor of the direction he should go.  He admitted that a sermon didn’t seem right and expounded on the passage in Luke.  He shared with us that in moments like these, when God has come on the scene and His Holy Spirit is present, moving and working, then He (God) has done all that He can do.   What is left is for us to ask.

Many of the other events of the service and the order of them have become scrambled in my mind, but I remember that many more people made their way to the altar to seek God, to ask for an outpouring of His Spirit, to praise Him.  I’m not sure how many came (as I was at the altar, too!) but I felt as though most of the church was in prayer.

God met with us this morning.  He had greater plans than ours.

As much as I like (need?) things to be done “decently and order” I love it when the Holy Spirit has other plans.  Many churches choose to resist His moving, needing to have the service completed in an hour.  Some churches try to stir up the Spirit and get lost in emotionalism.  This morning, our church chose to yield to the Spirit and let Him do His thing.

I’m sure God has more to do in my life and  the life of our church.  And I know that every service can’t be like this morning’s.  But when God does move again, I want to be there, I want to be open, I want to receive.

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Laughter

Posted by Daryl Densford on October 13, 2012 in Christianity, Military, Politics

There’s a lot being said this week about laughter, primarily Joe Biden’s inappropriate laughter while Rep. Ryan was speaking during the Vice-Presidential debate on Thursday. There’s little question that the Vice-President was disrespectful to Mr. Ryan throughout the debate, evidenced primarily by his laughter.

Now, I’ve seen attorneys in court start to pack up their papers and books while their opponent is making his closing arguments.  This action, while seeming dis-respectful has the purpose of showing the jury that what the opposing attorney is saying is not important.  It’s a tactic.

While the average Joe may not realize it, there are rules of decorum during a debate. Formal debating isn’t like two guys at the bar “debating” a recent news story or a decision the boss made at work.  What Mr. Biden and Mr. Ryan were engaged in was a formal debate, not a local bar debate.

As much as I’ve searched (though admittedly that hasn’t been too much) I haven’t found that laughing at your opponent’s comments is a tactic practiced in formal debating.   With it being a formal debate, there should have been proper respect for each other.  I didn’t see where Mr. Ryan gave in to the temptation that he certainly felt to return the dis-respect that he received.  He didn’t even yell or try to force his way into the discussion, but was respectful when Mr. Biden was speaking, even if he had been interrupted by him.

Laughter isn’t always a bad thing, though.   In the Old Testament, the book of Ecclesiastes says that there is “A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;” (Ecclesiastes 3:4, ESV). Job was encouraged, “He will yet fill your mouth with laughter, and your lips with shouting” (Job 8:21, ESV). And we’ve all heard it said, “Laughter is the best medicine!” (Likely from Proverbs 17:22 which says, “A joyful heart is good medicine . . .” (ESV).

I went to Army basic training in 1988 at Fort Dix, New Jersey.  When we first got there we were all a bit nervous about what we were getting ourselves into and were intimidated by the shouting Drill Sergeants with their “Brown Rounds.”  While a group of new recruits was being marched to their barracks, the Drill Sergeant brought them smartly to a stop with what would become a familiar command, “company, halt!”  Just then, overloaded with the day’s issue of military clothing and equipment, one of the Soldiers in the formation fell backward and hit the ground.  All of us were seriously quiet just waiting for what was going to happen next.  I think the whole company was holding their breath, not wanting to be the first one to make a noise.  Just then the Drill Sergeant knelt down, got in the fallen Soldier’s face and shouted:  “Who told you that you could take a break!”  While few had the courage to laugh out loud, all of us laughed within ourselves as this anxious moment turned light.  This laughter was just what we needed.

Well-placed laughter is good for us.  When we’re down or discouraged, to be able to laugh helps to bring us back.  When there is tension or uneasiness, laughter can bring us together.  When we are afraid, it can lighten the atmosphere.  But laughter, to be of value, must be well-placed.

Laughing during times of seriousness just brings frustration or even anger.  Laughing alone exclusive of someone who hurts, likely will not help that one who is hurting.  And certainly laughing at the expense of someone else only brings embarrassment and pain. But helping someone to laugh when they have not been able to can be a great encouragement and is likely just what they need.

So let’s laugh!  Not at someone else or their comments, but with each other.  Let laughter bringing us together and cheer us up!  All of us need it at times.

(photo: John Gress/Reuters. caption: U.S. Vice President Joe Biden (L) debates Republican vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan (R) during the U.S. vice presidential debate in Danville, Kentucky October 11, 2012.)

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World’s Best Dad

Posted by Daryl Densford on October 11, 2012 in Family, Music

It’s not very often when one can say, “hey, did you know my son’s in a band?”  It’s even less often when one can say, “have you heard my son’s CD?”  And you probably never hear, “my son’s CD was mastered by a Grammy Award winner”!  Well, I can say these things.

Before you comment that I’m abusing my blog for the commercial promotion of my son’s CD, let me share the title of it with you, it’s called: “World’s Best Dad”!  Grant it, my son just plays the mandolin and guitar on the album, but still . . . “World’s Best Dad”!

The band that he’s in is called Eddie Doldrum.  Not a Christian band.  While I’ve heard some of their music, I admit that I have not listened to all of it and I certainly haven’t scrutinized the lyrics.  For all I know, the “World’s Best Dad” could be some drunken bum who buys his kids and their friends drugs.  But let’s hope not!  I really don’t think that my son would be a part of such a work.  Even if he would, I can honestly and without hesitation say that I have never bought drugs for him or his friends!  In fact, he was several years old before he even got candy; we used to give him raisins and call them “nature’s candy”!

So, if you’ll accept a proud father’s shameless promotion of his son’s creativity, consider taking a look at his album.  You can find information about it here.

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Don’t Put Off Those Needed Repairs!

Posted by Daryl Densford on September 1, 2011 in Christianity

 My wife and I have recently began repairing our barn to get it ready for our animals for when cold and snowy weather hits.  We bought our place knowing that the barn was going to need a lot of repairs but I’ve been putting it off because it was going to be a lot of work.  Realizing that winter is going to arrive before we know it, I’ve been busy on my off-days jacking up sections of the barn, repairing the posts and re-setting them in concrete.  After that I’ll need to get on the roof and screw down where it’s been coming loose, and then I’ll have to build another door to replace the one that fell apart.  I’ve discovered that the longer that old barn has been ignored the worse the damage has become.

In life, we sometimes find ourselves in need of repair, with our foundations weak and our supports rotting away.  Most of the time we see the damage being done but we’ve ignored it because it would simply be too much work to make it right; but sooner or later we come to the realization that if we want Jesus to live in our life, we have to allow him to make us fit for His habitation.

That may mean putting a patch here or there to strengthen us.  It may require tearing away the rotted and damaged areas of our life and having them replaced with new supports and foundations.  Or we may be so bad off that what’s needed is to tear down our whole structure to build us back up new again.

Scripture teaches that, “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17)  The nice thing about our “remodel” is that God does the work, we just have to yield to Him.

I’ve learned from my old barn that it’s much better to take care of the little problems before they become big ones!  I’ve learned from God’s Word that He will help us with those problems if we just let Him!  I encourage you to allow God to make you a new creation, a suitable habitation for Him to dwell, live and love!

(Originally published 6 Oct 11 in The Guidon, Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri: http://www.myguidon.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=13993)

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What Does Easter Mean to You?

Posted by Daryl Densford on March 31, 2011 in Christianity

What do I think about when you mention Easter?  Reese’s Peanut Butter Eggs, the perfect combination of chocolate and peanut butter!  Ask my youngest daughter and she’ll talk about the Easter egg hunt at church with those plastic eggs full of melted chocolate.  My next youngest daughter is likely to say Spring Break is one of the best aspects of Easter:  A week without having to go to school so she can stay home and ride her horses all day!   My older kids used to look forward to the Easter baskets that my wife would lovingly assemble using last year’s plastic grass and scrounged-for baskets.  Talk to others about Easter and you may hear about the ham dinner that grandma used to make, new clothes, the Easter Bunny or Marshmallow Peeps.

If you ask some scholars about Easter, they may tell you that it comes from a pagan goddess or a lunar festival that has been “Christianized” by the Church.  Others may tell you that no day or season should be exalted above the others, that every day should be the “Lord’s Day.”

But ask millions of Christian believers who will gather to worship this April 24th in church buildings and homes and fields under shade trees and even military chapels around the world what Easter is all about and they will declare that it is the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.  As the angel said to the women who came looking for Jesus’ body, “Why do you look for the living among the dead?  He is not here; he has risen!” (Luke 24:6a, NIV).  Those worshipping believers will go on to say that because Jesus rose from the dead, they have the assurance of eternal life.  This assurance, available to anyone who seeks it, is a free gift from God.

I pray that you will be among the believers worshiping this Easter Sunday; and I hope that this season is full of everything that makes Easter great for you, whether it’s Reese’s Peanut Butter Eggs, Marshmallow Peeps, new clothes or ham.   But I especially hope that you experience our risen Savior, Jesus Christ, who will make not only this season great, but all of eternity!

(Originally published 21 Apr 11 in The Guidon, Fort Leonard Wood, MO: http://www.myguidon.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=13355&Itemid=40 )

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A Prayer of Benediction for Chaplain Dale Goetz

Posted by Daryl Densford on September 3, 2010 in Chaplaincy, Christianity, Military

FT. JACKSON, SC (3 Sep 10) – Recently, the Chaplain Corps lost one of its finest chaplains, Chaplain (CPT) Dale Goetz, in Afghanistan.  We received the news here at the Chaplain School while attending the Chaplain Captain’s Career Course.  Since many of us knew Dale, and the rest of us felt the camaraderie of a “Brother in Arms,” we felt it appropriate to have a Memorial Service for him.  My part was to pray the benediction.  As I prepared the prayer, I felt very impressed that Dale needed to be remembered.  His sacrifice needed to be remembered.  As I post it here, I pray it again . . .

Our most Gracious God and Father,

100_3560We thank you for your presence and love which helps us to endure through difficult times.  We thank you for moments like these when we don’t have to be alone but can gather among brothers and sisters in the faith.  We thank you for the peace that you have brought us today, your peace—that can exist within us even when all around us there is no peace.

As much as you comfort us who have gathered here today, we pray that in an even greater measure you will comfort Dale’s family, especially his wife Christy and their three sons Landon, Caleb and Joel.  Be for them all that they need you to be just now and continue to provide for them in every way in the days, weeks, months and years ahead that they face life without their husband, father and son.

Finally Lord, we pray that you will bring real peace to our land, so that we can rest in safety and comfort and not have to send our sons and daughters into harm’s way.  Bring to us, we humbly ask you, the time when parents don’t have to grieve the loss of their children killed in war; hasten the day when spouses don’t have to say goodbye to their loved ones because they serve their country; provide for us, dear Father, a world whose children do not have to grow up fatherless because of the sin that envelopes us; and be victorious, Almighty God, over the Evil One, establish your Kingdom on Earth finally and forever, that we may enjoy your loving and peaceful presence for all eternity.

Go with us now, Lord we pray, as we reluctantly return to the world out there.  Please don’t let us soon forget our brother Dale but help us to honor his sacrifice through our lives lived for your glory and Christ’s life lived through us.

“May the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever.  Amen.”  (Heb13:20-21)

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When does life begin?

Posted by Daryl Densford on February 13, 2009 in Religion
I’ve been thinking about this question, “when does life begin,” and have my own answer, based on the Bible. In researching it, though, I came across a website that discusses it from a medical/biological view. I offer it here without my commentary or edit. It has quotes interspersed that were part of the webpage. It is from the websitehttp://www.prolifephysicians.org/lifebegins.htm.
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When Does Human Life Begin?

There is a tremendous consensus in the scientific community about when life begins. This is hardly controversial. If the claim were made that life was discovered on another planet, for example, there are well-defined criteria to which we could refer to conclusively determine whether the claim was accurate. How do scientists distinguish between life and non-life?

A scientific textbook called “Basics of Biology” gives five characteristics of living things; these five criteria are found in all modern elementary scientific textbooks:

1. Living things are highly organized.

2. All living things have an ability to acquire materials and energy.

3. All living things have an ability to respond to their environment.

4. All living things have an ability to reproduce.

5. All living things have an ability to adapt.

According to this elementary definition of life, life begins at fertilization, when a sperm unites with an oocyte. From this moment, the being is highly organized, has the ability to acquire materials and energy, has the ability to respond to his or her environment, has the ability to adapt, and has the ability to reproduce (the cells divide, then divide again, etc., and barring pathology and pending reproductive maturity has the potential to reproduce other members of the species). Non-living things do not do these things. Even before the mother is aware that she is pregnant, a distinct, unique life has begun his or her existence inside her.

Furthermore, that life is unquestionably human. A human being is a member of the species homo sapiens. Human beings are products of conception, which is when a human male sperm unites with a human female oocyte (egg). When humans procreate, they don’t make non-humans like slugs, monkeys, cactuses, bacteria, or any such thing. Emperically-verifiable proof is as close as your nearest abortion clinic: send a sample of an aborted fetus to a laboratory and have them test the DNA to see if its human or not. Genetically, a new human being comes into existence from the earliest moment of conception.
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“I will neither give a deadly drug to anybody if asked for it, nor will I make a suggestion to this effect. Similarly, I will not give to a woman an abortive remedy.” Hippocrates, 400 B.C., Greece
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Biologically, from the moment of conception this new human being is not a part of the mother’s body. Since when does a mother’s body have male genitals, two brains, four kidneys? The preborn human being may be dependent upon the mother for nutrition, however, this does not diminish his or her humanity, but proves it. Moreover, dependence upon a parent for survival is not a capital crime.

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“To accept the fact that after fertilization has taken place a new human has come into being is no longer a matter of taste or opinion … it is plain experimental evidence.” The “Father of Modern Genetics” Dr. Jerome Lejeune, Univ. of Descarte, Paris
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At the average time when a woman is aware that she is pregnant (the fifth to sixth week after conception), the preborn human being living inside her is metabolizing nutrition, excreting waste, moving, sucking his or her thumb, growing, and doing many other things that non-living things just do not do. As early as 21 days after conception, the baby’s heart has begun to beat his or her own unique blood-type, often different than the mother’s. (Moore & Persaud, The Developing Human, p.310; Nilsson & Hamberger, A Child is Born, p.86; Rugh & Shettles, From Conception to Birth, p.217.) At 40 days after conception, brain waves can be read on an EEG, or an electroencephalogram. (Dr. H. Hamlin, Life or Death by EEG, JAMA, Oct.12, 1964, p.113.)
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“By all the criteria of modern molecular biology, life is present from the moment of conception.” Dr. Hymie Gordon, Chairman, Department of Genetics at the Mayo Clinic
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Medical science already refers to a spontaneous heart rhythm and the presence of brain waves to determine whether someone is alive at the other spectrum of human existence. In simplistic terms, if an organ donor is in an automobile accident and is on life support in a hospital, the physician cannot “pull the plug” and donate the patient’s organs to others unless the patient is “brain dead” and his heart is not beating on its own. If the medical community maintained consistency with this generally-accepted medical definition of human life, then we would condemn every abortion after the time when the average woman discovers she is pregnant. Every abortion, by the generally-accepted standards of medical science, aborts an innocent human life.

One of the most amazing photographs I have ever seen is of a surgery being performed on a 21 week-old fetus named Samuel Armas. The boy is having surgery performed in utero for his spina bifida. In the photograph, the unconscious boy’s hand is poking through the surgical incision in the uterus and is resting on the finger of the surgeon. You can see the photo athttp://www.michaelclancy.com/. The picture paints a thousand words that my mere words cannot match, but allow me to draw attention to the obvious fact that the surgeon is performing surgery on one living human being who is residing in the womb of another living human being.

“Yeah,” the pro-choice attorney rebuts, “but is it a person?”

In Roe vs. Wade, Justice Harry Blackmun noted, “The appellee and certain amici argue that the fetus is a ‘person’ within the language and meaning of the Fourteenth Amendment. In support of this, they outline at length and in detail the well-known facts of fetal development. If this suggestion of personhood is established, the appellant’s case, of course, collapses, for the fetus’ right to life would then be guaranteed specifically by the (Fourteenth) Amendment.”

According to Webster’s Seventh New Collegiate Dictionary, a person is “a human being.” Attempts to render an entire class of human beings as “non-persons” based upon arbitrary qualities such as age and place of residence in order to discriminate against them is immoral and unjust. History is full of infamous examples of governments legalizing the discrimination of an entire class of human beings by rendering them “non-persons.” Jews were rendered “sub-humans” in Germany in the 1940’s and colonial slaveowners bought and sold Africans as “property.” As a matter of fact, the Supreme Court in 1857 ruled that Dred Scott, a black slave, was not a “person” with rights but the “property” of his master. Was the Court wrong then? Of course! The Supreme Court of 1973 that legalized abortion nationwide with its Roe v. Wade decision was just as immoral and unjust. They dehumanized an entire class of human beings in order to legitimize wholesale discrimination against them. Abortion may go down in history as the greatest human rights abuse of all time.

As our nation’s founding documents make clear, the right to life is God-given and inalienable. The right to live cannot be legitimately usurped by men. No man, no government has the right to deprive one of life or liberty without a trial by jury, regardless of skin color, age, stage of development, level of dependence upon others for survival, or place of residence.

Abortion results in the death of an innocent human being. It is immoral and unjust when evaluated in the light of the law of the land (our founding documents) and the divine commandment that forbids taking the life of an innocent human being (Exodus 20:13).

(Photo from websitehttp://www.prolifephysicians.org/lifebegins.htm)

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