by steve | Aug 4, 2023 | Kingdom Living, Men
Four times in Joshua chapter one, the great leader was exhorted to be strong and courageous. I find that interesting. Why would this be such an urgency? Because apparently, Joshua wasn’t very heroic then. The nation of Israel was about to head into the Promised Land. This military campaign was something they had not done before, and Joshua was charged with leading them. The possibility of fear was substantial. The danger was immense. The unknown was profound. God’s odd battle plan of marching around Jericho to take the city seemed ludicrous. Wouldn’t an artillery bombardment and Marine frontal attack make more sense? The “What ifs” were compounding by the moment. (more…)
by steve | Jul 28, 2023 | Just Life, Kingdom Living
It happened every six weeks. Checks on my first-grade report card for unnecessary talking. While my teacher, Mrs. Garret, and parents found no pleasure in my boisterous bent, this was probably normal for an adventurous boy. Yes, young children talk a lot, but we can see its purity even if it sometimes gets annoying. Their young minds are simply exploring the world around them, verbalizing their findings, and announcing their questions with no other motive than sharing the fun with everyone around them. It’s simple. It’s plain. There are no hidden agendas.
On the other hand, when we get older, we tend to wonder about someone constantly wanting to be the center of conversational attention. (more…)
by steve | Jul 14, 2023 | Just Life, Kingdom Living, Men, Social, World
As noted in my blog post last week, while I had not yet seen The Sound of Freedom, I knew beyond doubt that the Guardian’s review of the movie was completely biased and fancifully fictitious. Having now seen the entire film, I can say that I was first impressed with the historical narrative and firmly believe that my pre-judgment of the media criticism was confirmed and spot on. True events inspired the movie, which journeys with former Homeland Security agent, Tim Ballard, rescuing children from human trafficking and pedophilia crime. The film is more than a mere action thriller, but a trumpet blast of awakening people to the expeditious growth of this vile crime all around the globe, with the US being a prime consumer. That would seem like a positive thing.
So, why have numerous media outlets and left-leaning journals targeted the film for destruction? Are human slavery and the sexual trafficking of children an illusion, as they claim? (more…)
by steve | Jul 8, 2023 | Just Life, Kingdom Living, Social
Honest review of The Sound of Freedom movie? Really? Wow – and this is called journalism? No, this is ultra-liberal, hedonistic, atheistic, and ludicrous propaganda – plain and simple – if not worse. I’ve not seen the flick yet simply because I’m a bit short of cash right now. But I know enough to see the willful insanity in this review and thus am more than ever committed to seeing it soon. To compare this (based on a true story) film to QAnon is asinine and insane at best. Are Charles Bramesco, Betsy Reed and The Guardian US and their other deranged ilk truly this unintelligent, or is something more sinister at play here?
What is undergirding this simplistic, ignorant, and contentious writing? Money? Politics? Arrogance? Or maybe the higher-ups pressuring Charles Bramesco to do their bidding for reasons we cannot know? Why on earth did he write this profoundly rancid review? Perhaps Bramesco believes what he has written himself. We all know this is a huge evil problem – why is his denial so hard? Why are Bramesco and others creating a straw man out of the film by equating it to Right-wing nut jobs? Well – you’re smart; connect the dots. (more…)
by steve | Jun 28, 2023 | Just Life, Kingdom Living, Social
How are we to see this restriction? That is the Divine Design of creating sex for the exclusive domain of the martial union of one man and one woman so long as they both shall live. Are we to look at this as a barrier to our fun? Is this the picture of a fence separating a row of wide-eyed 5th-grade boys watching the new roller coaster opening at the amusement park? Or maybe see this as something good and loving, like the guard rale guiding us along a high mountain road, which will bring us enthralling views of creation once we reach the top. One of the most disturbing myths surrounding the Divine and sex is that God is down on the subject. The truth, however, is quite the opposite.
In reality, God created something profoundly beautiful and exciting in sex, and doing life according to His Design brings us into lush green fields of pleasure. When it comes to God and sex, some will argue that because Jesus technically never used the specific verbiage of pre-marital sex, gay marriage, or other hot-button catchphrases of our day, such as trans-gendering, sex can therefore be defined in the eye of the beholder. This argument is particularly voiced in the onslaught of those in the LGBT+ movement’s Pride Month. After all, they might say, “If it feels good, it must be ok,” because Jesus loves us.
No, Jesus did not comment on those specific issues, but he didn’t need to. He clearly defined the root of this discussion by going back to creation when the religious bean counters of his day debated where the fine line was between no-fault divorce and acceptable grounds for marital termination. (more…)
by steve | Jun 17, 2023 | Just Life, Kingdom Living, Men
Growing up, I thought the Marine Corps had the best recruiting commercials out of all the armed services. Maybe that’s why I spent so much time in the Marine Recruiting office in middle school. However, I followed God to Bible College rather than going to the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego after High School and a year at Junior College. There’s something inspirational, though, in the thought of being the “tip of the spear” and thus saving the world. Something almost unexplainable rises inside of me when I think about the values of the Marine Corps.
But maybe that’s not you. Perhaps God has placed something different in your soul, which initiates vision and life. I think John Elbridge got it right when he noted, “Adventure, with all its requisite danger and wildness, is a deeply spiritual longing written into the soul of man.” Today though, noble manhood has fallen on tough times in many quarters of our culture. As we approach Father’s Day in 2023, the problem is much more exasperated. (more…)
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