As a devout Christian I do not have a problem with the use of contraception. After all, there are married couples who use contraception. And while I completely disagree with sex outside of marriage (as all Christians should), if you're going to have sex outside of marriage, you ought to take as many precautions as possible to prevent catching an STD or having a child out of wedlock. My problem with President Obama's Affordable Health Care Act, which mandates that all employers including many religious organizations who provide health care for their employees must now also provide free contraception for their employees, including sterilization and abortifacients, is the Obama administration's justifications for passing the bill. The justifications are quite misleading.
President Obama's administration and the supporters of the Affordable Health Care Act say that it's a women's health issue. They say it will make contraception more affordable for women. They say that during a woman's life span contraception will cost her between $3,600 and $18,000. They say that tax payers will save between 4.7 and 6.2 billion dollars. They say it will help avoid more unintended pregnancies.
First, why is the Affordable Health Care Act being sold to the public simply as a women's health issue? Is the health and welfare of men not important? Are men not worth protecting? Second, the life span of women in America is 80 yrs. If the average woman did not began having sex until the age of 21 (we know the average woman becomes sexually active before then), and used contraception for all 59 yrs between the age of 21 and 80, the average woman would spend $305 a year to total $18,000. $305 a year comes out to just over $25 a month; a cost which is reduced even further by the fact that free health clinics give out some form of free contraception. Are we saying that the average woman, even the average poor woman, cannot afford $25 of month for contraception in a country where the majority of poor people receive economic assistance? Also, if it is true that 99% of women have used some form of contraception during their life, at no point and time are 99% of women using contraception at any one given time.
Third, maybe the Affordable Health Care Act will save tax payers between 4.7 and 6.2 billion dollars, but increase in insurance premiums due to the Affordable Health Care Act will absorb any such savings. As a result of the passing of the AHCA premiums will go up to as high as $1,200 for the average person. An increase in premiums will make it much more difficult for small businesses, colleges and universities to even offer health care to its employees and students. Furthermore, 4.7 to 6.2 billion dollars is a large savings when it stands alone, but we examine how much tax payers pay in federal and state taxes for health care that number is quite putrid.
Finally, how do we define unintended pregnancies. Do we define unintended pregnancies based upon whether or not an individual is married or not? There are unmarried couples that plan to have children when they have sexual intercourse and married couples that do not. When are we going to force people to hold themselves accountable for their actions? To have sex outside of marriage is a choice. To have a sex when one cannot afford the consequences is a choice. Sex in general is a choice. If as a Christian I own a non-religious business, why should I be held accountable for someone else's actions that my beliefs teach me are sin?
P.S. Is anyone else uncomfortable with President Obama passing the AHCA given how much money big pharma has donated to his presidential campaign??? Hmmmm...
Saturday, March 10, 2012
Saturday, February 18, 2012
Shame
Face hung low so nobody will know.
How long can she hide the bump before the baby begins to show?
How long before the evidence of her fall is easily seen on her face?
How long before the congregation recognizes that she has slipped from grace?
Does she have the courage to admit the change in her condition?
She's asked GOD for forgiveness, but will the people accept her repentance?
Or will they view her simply as another hypocritical rebellious Christian?
She understands the necessity of guilt,
But refuses to allow it to make her weak like a concrete house sitting on stilts,
She knows the BLOOD has her covered like a quilt,
But still,
In the stillness,
She admits that she was drawn away by her own lust caught in a moment of weakness,
A faction of war between her flesh and meekness,
She wonders, "Will GOD forget my name? My sin is done. I'm contrite. Now how long do I have to carry this shame?"
How long can she hide the bump before the baby begins to show?
How long before the evidence of her fall is easily seen on her face?
How long before the congregation recognizes that she has slipped from grace?
Does she have the courage to admit the change in her condition?
She's asked GOD for forgiveness, but will the people accept her repentance?
Or will they view her simply as another hypocritical rebellious Christian?
She understands the necessity of guilt,
But refuses to allow it to make her weak like a concrete house sitting on stilts,
She knows the BLOOD has her covered like a quilt,
But still,
In the stillness,
She admits that she was drawn away by her own lust caught in a moment of weakness,
A faction of war between her flesh and meekness,
She wonders, "Will GOD forget my name? My sin is done. I'm contrite. Now how long do I have to carry this shame?"
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Why Don't We Get Married???
In our society people aften ask the question, "why do we get married???" Afterall, the divorce rate is 50% (WAY TOO HIGH) and the average marriage last 8 yrs (NOT NEARLY LONG ENOUGH). Now I could make the GOD argument and talk about his will for us and the sanctity of marriage (which I strongly believe in), but I'll take another approach. An approach that some may describe as a little more practical. What I want to do is to take a look at the options we have outside of marriage; which would either be cohabitation (not married but living together) or to simply date while living in separate homes.
The average cohabitating relationship last 3yrs, and the average nonmarried noncohabitating relationship last 2yrs. 79% of cohabitating relationships do not make it to the 5 yr mark; only 21% of these couple make it to the 7 yr mark. Which would mean that on average a marriage last 2 1/2 times longer than a cohabitating relationship and 4 times longer than a nonmarried noncohabitating relationship. This would also mean that a person who consistently cohabitates could likely go through the process of beginnning and ending 4 to 5 relationships over the course of 15 yrs. What effect does this constant cycle of failed relationships have on the men and women involved??? What effect does it have on the children involved???
I can easily talk about the effect that that cycle has on the men and women involved, but i would much rather focus on the children. Based upon the statistics I mentenioned earlier, a child who comes from a cohabitating household is much more likely to not only experience a broken home (a household without a father) than a child who comes from a married household, but they're also much more likely to experience the dissolution of a home multiple times over. Numbers are often very misleading but in this case they tell a compelling truth: 70% of high school dropout come from broken homes, 85% of prison inmates (both male and female) come from broken homes, 85% of children with behavioral problems come from from broken homes, and 90% of runaways come from broken homes. Furthermore, households that do not have a father/husband in the home are losing 300 BILLION DOLLARS a year; which also means that those households are missing out economically.
What does all this mean for our society???...Hmmmm...Let's see...Less high school grads, less college grads, less entreprenuers, more crime, more gang members, more poverty...AND...THE CYCYLE CONTINUES...AND ON...AND ON...AND ON...
I strongly believe that marriage is necessary...Instead of choosing to not get married, we would do ourselves, our children, and our community MUCH GOOD to focus on strengthening the institution of marriage...The results are clear...
GOD BLESS!!!
The average cohabitating relationship last 3yrs, and the average nonmarried noncohabitating relationship last 2yrs. 79% of cohabitating relationships do not make it to the 5 yr mark; only 21% of these couple make it to the 7 yr mark. Which would mean that on average a marriage last 2 1/2 times longer than a cohabitating relationship and 4 times longer than a nonmarried noncohabitating relationship. This would also mean that a person who consistently cohabitates could likely go through the process of beginnning and ending 4 to 5 relationships over the course of 15 yrs. What effect does this constant cycle of failed relationships have on the men and women involved??? What effect does it have on the children involved???
I can easily talk about the effect that that cycle has on the men and women involved, but i would much rather focus on the children. Based upon the statistics I mentenioned earlier, a child who comes from a cohabitating household is much more likely to not only experience a broken home (a household without a father) than a child who comes from a married household, but they're also much more likely to experience the dissolution of a home multiple times over. Numbers are often very misleading but in this case they tell a compelling truth: 70% of high school dropout come from broken homes, 85% of prison inmates (both male and female) come from broken homes, 85% of children with behavioral problems come from from broken homes, and 90% of runaways come from broken homes. Furthermore, households that do not have a father/husband in the home are losing 300 BILLION DOLLARS a year; which also means that those households are missing out economically.
What does all this mean for our society???...Hmmmm...Let's see...Less high school grads, less college grads, less entreprenuers, more crime, more gang members, more poverty...AND...THE CYCYLE CONTINUES...AND ON...AND ON...AND ON...
I strongly believe that marriage is necessary...Instead of choosing to not get married, we would do ourselves, our children, and our community MUCH GOOD to focus on strengthening the institution of marriage...The results are clear...
GOD BLESS!!!
Friday, January 13, 2012
Why Do You Think So Little of Yourself?
You stand in the mirror and you think to yourself, “Who could ever love that? Why would anyone ever want to love that?”
That monster,
That sloppy disgusting thing,
That vile creature,
You touch your whole body,
Measuring your fat to muscle ratio,
You see the lips of your favorite actress and you want hers instead of yours,
“Her nose would fit my face better,” you think to yourself,
You wear make-up in excess to hide scars that do not exist,
You receive compliments daily, but yet and still that thought persist, “Who could ever love that? Why would anyone ever want to love that?”
That monster,
That sloppy disgusting thing,
That vile creature,
I just want to grab you and get as close to your face as possible and scream, “YOU ARE NOT A MONSTER. YOU ARE NOT SLOPPY OR DISGUSTING. YOU ARE NOT A VILE CREATURE. ANGELINA JOLIE HAS NOTHING ON YOU. YOU DON’T NEED HALLE BERRY’S NOSE. GOD’S BLUSH IS ALL THE MAKE-UP YOU NEED. HOW DARE YOU HATE YOURSELF WHEN GOD LOVES YOU? HOW DARE YOU DOUBT YOURSELF WHEN GOD BELIEVES IN YOU? HOW DARE YOU? HOW DARE YOU, THINK SO LITTLE OF YOURSELF?
That monster,
That sloppy disgusting thing,
That vile creature,
You touch your whole body,
Measuring your fat to muscle ratio,
You see the lips of your favorite actress and you want hers instead of yours,
“Her nose would fit my face better,” you think to yourself,
You wear make-up in excess to hide scars that do not exist,
You receive compliments daily, but yet and still that thought persist, “Who could ever love that? Why would anyone ever want to love that?”
That monster,
That sloppy disgusting thing,
That vile creature,
I just want to grab you and get as close to your face as possible and scream, “YOU ARE NOT A MONSTER. YOU ARE NOT SLOPPY OR DISGUSTING. YOU ARE NOT A VILE CREATURE. ANGELINA JOLIE HAS NOTHING ON YOU. YOU DON’T NEED HALLE BERRY’S NOSE. GOD’S BLUSH IS ALL THE MAKE-UP YOU NEED. HOW DARE YOU HATE YOURSELF WHEN GOD LOVES YOU? HOW DARE YOU DOUBT YOURSELF WHEN GOD BELIEVES IN YOU? HOW DARE YOU? HOW DARE YOU, THINK SO LITTLE OF YOURSELF?
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Prince of Peace
The walls crumbled, easily,
Crumbled like buildings during an earthquake which were builton sand,
You rebuilt those walls
Three days time,
Restoration at its best,
You are the true vine,
Truth and life,
Illumination in darkness,
The bread of life,
Unleaven,
Pure,
Conceived by the Holy Spirit,
Baptized unto fulfillment,
Your voice bring storms to a halt,
The wind listens to you,
Speak Lord,
You are the door to the everlasting FATHER,
The gate keeper,
Greater than high society world Governements,
You wear stripes for healing,
Emmanuel, you are with us,
You make us whole, Your BLOOD,
The ultimate symbol of LOVE,
Quintessence,
Wonderful, counsellor,
The opposition doesn't stand a chance,
In you the conquered conquer,
We are more than,
You enter ALL places triumphantly,
Your grace is sufficient,
Let us run to your throne boldly,
Unabashedly,
You are salvation, our safety,
Regeneration, we are new,
Justification, We are validated,
You overcame the grave,
Resurrected to the highest,
Ascended beyond the firmament,
Heaven celebrated your arrival,
War retreats in the face of you,
Nothing can take the place of you,
With GOD we are at one because of you,
Everyone is welcome to the feast,
Particularly the least,
It is you Jesus,
Yes, you,
Our Prince Of PEACE.
Crumbled like buildings during an earthquake which were builton sand,
You rebuilt those walls
Three days time,
Restoration at its best,
You are the true vine,
Truth and life,
Illumination in darkness,
The bread of life,
Unleaven,
Pure,
Conceived by the Holy Spirit,
Baptized unto fulfillment,
Your voice bring storms to a halt,
The wind listens to you,
Speak Lord,
You are the door to the everlasting FATHER,
The gate keeper,
Greater than high society world Governements,
You wear stripes for healing,
Emmanuel, you are with us,
You make us whole, Your BLOOD,
The ultimate symbol of LOVE,
Quintessence,
Wonderful, counsellor,
The opposition doesn't stand a chance,
In you the conquered conquer,
We are more than,
You enter ALL places triumphantly,
Your grace is sufficient,
Let us run to your throne boldly,
Unabashedly,
You are salvation, our safety,
Regeneration, we are new,
Justification, We are validated,
You overcame the grave,
Resurrected to the highest,
Ascended beyond the firmament,
Heaven celebrated your arrival,
War retreats in the face of you,
Nothing can take the place of you,
With GOD we are at one because of you,
Everyone is welcome to the feast,
Particularly the least,
It is you Jesus,
Yes, you,
Our Prince Of PEACE.
Saturday, December 10, 2011
My GOD Lives
You can keep your coffins,
Save your funeral processions,
Your black dresses,
Black suits.
Keep those tear drenched Church floors and hankerchiefs,
Eulogies by strangers,
Making heart felt statements that they don't really mean,
Death has no place here.
My GOD lives,
HIS heart beats,
Beats like congos in the congo in the midst of mid day heat.
HIS son's blood flooded the treets and closed deaths's door.
GOD breathes,
HIS heart rate is perfect,
Full of life HE is,
HE is alive,
Extinction can skip this house,
Pass over these post,
The life of the LAMB has already been shed,
GOD is among us,
HE dwells within,
My GOD lives...
Save your funeral processions,
Your black dresses,
Black suits.
Keep those tear drenched Church floors and hankerchiefs,
Eulogies by strangers,
Making heart felt statements that they don't really mean,
Death has no place here.
My GOD lives,
HIS heart beats,
Beats like congos in the congo in the midst of mid day heat.
HIS son's blood flooded the treets and closed deaths's door.
GOD breathes,
HIS heart rate is perfect,
Full of life HE is,
HE is alive,
Extinction can skip this house,
Pass over these post,
The life of the LAMB has already been shed,
GOD is among us,
HE dwells within,
My GOD lives...
Monday, October 3, 2011
BOOK RELEASE!!!
Support Minister Derell Eddings' book: "THESE WORDS SPEAK FREEDOM." It is NOW available for download for for ONLY $7.99 for ALL pc's, laptops, e-readers, the i-pod touch, the i-phone, and ALL phones with android technology...WE THANK YOU IN ADVANCE...BLESSINGS...http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/91429
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