I spent time with an old friend this week.  I had lunch with Rod on Thursday.  I met Rod in 1979.  I was a senior in high school and he led the singing for a youth group I attended.  We became roommates for a few years, and have stayed in contact ever since.
The most remarkable thing about our friendship is how little we seem to have in common.  Rod has never been married, I have been married for 26 years.  Rod knows absolutely nothing about sports, I am a sports freak (my wife will vouch for my unhealthy obsession with baseball.)  Rod loves nature hikes and the outdoors, my idea of camping involves a Winnebago.  And yet, 29 years after we first met, we remain friends.
We are friends because although at first glance we seem to have little in common, the little in common we have is the stuff that matters.
We share a common faith, a common belief that life is to be lived with a higher purpose and for a higher call.  We are both striving to find God's place for us, we are both desiring to be a part of building God's Kingdom.  We have shared values.  When it comes to what matters, we are together, lock step in our journey.
Reflecting on our relationship I am compelled to wonder how many friendships have been lost or never born because of superficial things.  Thank God Rod and I took the time to go a little deeper.

Not too long ago I had a conversation with a young man.  He was telling me of his distaste for his girlfriend's family.  The dysfunction he perceived was intolerable.  He expressed his strong desire that they needed to change.  I told him that was not really an option. The likelihood of a family unit experiencing dramatic change was almost zero.  If he was to deal with the situation honestly he would see that there were only two choices available to him.  Either he had to stay in the relationship and accept family as it was, or he had to end the relationship.  As much as he wished it otherwise, wishes would not change the truth of the situation. 

As I was listening to the Democrats remarks to General Petraeus, this story came back to my mind.  There can be no denying that everyone, Democrats and Republicans alike, would love it if all of our troops could come home and leave Iraq to succeed on its own.  Wouldn't it be great if the Iraqi leaders got their act together and fixed everything on their own,  The problem of course is that this is not one of the choices available.  Wishing doesn't make it so.  The actual choices are that we stay and fight until there is stability, or we leave the country in a state of genocidal chaos.  I don't like options at all.  I wish there was another way.  The truth is there isn't.

Given the options available, the choice is easy.  We need to stay and we need to win.  As a nation we need to remember that when it comes to policy, impossible dreams are not an option.

We went to Opening Night at Angel Stadium Friday night.  The game was terrible until the ninth inning, by which time we had already passed through the turnstiles. 
My lovely and extremely bored 12 year-old daughter and I got up during the top of the 7th inning to take a walk around the stadium.  I was amazed to see the number of people on the concourse who were not even paying the least bit of attention to the game.  There they stood, glassy-eyed, beer cup in hand, engaged in what seemed to my ears to be conversation about anything but baseball.  It was sad to me.
I know people drink, and I know that a good number of people get drunk.  What struck me that night was the number of people for whom that seems to be the ultimate goal in life.  The equation by which they live their lives seems to be me+ethanol = fun. I believe that many people don't know how to have a good time while sober.  I suspect the joy of conversation with friends is lost upon them.
I pointed out to my daughter a stark contrast.  In our home there is no alcohol.  There is however a lot of laughter and a lot of fun. 

I will be teaching a Family Service on the 29th.  I will be teaching the story of Rahab, which is in and of itself a little unusual for an audience that includes elementary age children.  Yet Rahab is a tale of incredible faith. She risked everything in service to a God that was foreign to her and her people.  The foundational faith upon which her actions were based is found in her statement to the spies she endeavored to protect.  Look at what she says-
Josh 2:9-11
9    and said to them, "I know that the LORD has given this land to you and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you.
10    We have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed.
11    When we heard of it, our hearts melted and everyone's courage failed because of you, for the LORD your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below.
(NIV)
with this statement we can see several things about her faith-
 She acknowledged the plan of God: The Lord has given this land to you
- not us
- it is unavoidable

She acknowledged the power of God and the deeds of God: The parting of the Red Sea and the victories over Sihon and Og
- He is powerful
- He is victorious even against overwhelming odds

She acknowledges the supremacy of God: “God in heaven above and earth below”
- In doing so she renounces the gods of Jericho
- And acknowledges the completeness of God’s superiority

When is the last time any of us made a stand like that?

A headline on Yahoo! Music:  Takeover by Hamas Illustrates Failure of Bush's Mideast Vision  .
Why is it always George Bush's Fault?  He didn't cast a vote in favor of Hamas, he didn't contribute to the corruption in Fatah that lead to its ouster in those elections that saw Hams ascend to power.  Yet as with everything that goes wrong in the world, it is Bush's fault.

It is his fault that the Cavaliers lost to the Spurs, that the Space Station's computers are on the fritz, and it is especially his fault that I received a ticket for an illegal U-turn two months ago.

It is time for the media and the liberal elites to recognize that the problem in Palestine is the Palestinians.  It is not Israel or the US.  The Palestinians have received billions of dollars in aid and numerous chances to show they can live in peace.  They don't want peace. They want war.  Theirs is a culture of hate, malice and strife.  The current problems are theirs.

The end of the school year has arrived, bringing many welcome realities, including no more homework (which means no more helping with homework!) and no more sack lunches (which is my job, and I hate it!).  The end of the year also brings final exams, report cards, and academic awards.

I have never been a huge fan of academic awards.  As someone who always did well, it seemed a little strange to receive additional recognition in front of peers who either don't care at all or who care enough to hate the people who outperformed them.  In some sense doing well, and the success it breeds, is underrated.  It is after all the only part of academic achievement that continues on.  I can say from experience that the honors I received have not made one iota of difference.  I daresay there is not a single patient in my practice who can name a single award I have received.  What they do know is whether or not they got better from my treatment, and whether or not I cared.

But something happened this week to change my opinion about academic awards.  My daughter got one.  Before I get accused of hypocrisy, her award was different.  She is not an A student. She is not even really a solid B student.  She is more of a B minus student to be honest.  But she is the hardest working student I have seen.  Day after day she battles her homework without complaint, continuing on longer than I ever did.  I have listened while my wife went over and over and over material for a test, and felt the disappointment when the score came back as a C, sometimes worse.  Yet she continued on, without a hint of discouragement.

The night before her awards assembly at her Lutheran Middle School, not even knowing the assembly was to occur, I talked with her about how proud I am of her.  Using the Bible story of the widow who in giving 2 cents to the temple was praised for giving all she had, I told her how God wants our hearts and our efforts, and that results are secondary.  I explained that her giving her all to get a C was more valuable than someone else cruising to an A.  Not in terms of knowledge or success, but in what it shows about character.  and since character is what matters most, I was proud of her.

At the awards assembly, they handed out the honor roll recognitions and the various other success based awards, and then the teacher presented  an achievement award.  The award was given to "Someone who always gave 110%, and always had a smile on her face."  The smile got bigger when her name was announced, and continued throughout the day.  I was grateful that at least for that day, someone took the time to honor what really matters in life, which is what is in the heart, not the head.

Rough week here at the Doctor Bart household.  Our 4 week kitchen remodel is into week number 7 with the end of the tunnel moving further, not closer.  This was the week the granite counters were supposed to go in, which was to begin the home stretch.
The counters went in, but don't look right.  the installers decide to put the seam right beneath the window in the most visible part of the kitchen.  The seam line couldn't be more obvious if you hung a neon "seam here" sign above it.
Coupled with wiring problems, (the plug to our bedroom television actually MELTED), cabinet problems (lopsided drawers, missing end pieces for cabinets, and the fact that laborers were stealing our food (they actually raided our fridge and snacks) we can say that we have officially descended into the emotional abyss that accompanies home remodels.
Thursday morning saw a meltdown in the presence of my wife that left her pondering the value of my life insurance policy.  Although not directed at her the generalized venting of my anger was not a frightening thing.  So yesterday when I spoke to the contractor, it was with significant fear that it might not go well.
Complicating the matter is the fact that the contractor is a friend/patient/brother in Christ.  I have delivered his children, and care for his parents and sibling as well.  If thing s were to go badly the ripples would spread widely.
Echoing in my mind as I spoke to him were the words "Its just a kitchen, Its just a thing.  People are more important."  I expressed my true emotion, the fear that after all of the expense and inconvenience I would be left with something I did not want or like.
The drywall worker in attendance, also a believer, purposefully came to me later and said he was impressed the the grace with which I expressed my concerns.  I was grateful that God had helped me control my anger, and particularly that it had showed.
The neon granite seam remans, but will be fixed (I hope), there is much to be done.  But I can take a measure of solace in the knowledge that a friendship remains intact.

After reading the transcript of Christopher Hitchen's "debate" with Dr. Mark Roberts, I walked away at the amazing simplicity of Hitchen's "arguments".  They can be summed up very easily.  We "know" there is no God because:
1- Religious people do bad things
2- atheists can do good things too
3- The God of the Bible doesn't meet Hitchen's standard for morality
4- The Gospels don't say what he thinks they should if they were true

Wow.  I am going to have to rethink my faith because my God isn't as smart as Christopher Hitchens.  Sorry, that just doesn't carry much weight.

I wish more time had been spent on the difficult questions science cannot answer.  There is no way to explain the complexity of life through random chance.  Even a simple E. Coli bacteria has 4,000,000 DNA base pairs.  That's a long sequence to nail down by chance.  Complex "developments" such as a seeing eye, or avian flight would require literally hundreds if not thousands of harmonious synchronized mutations, all providing reproductive advantage in autosomal dominant transmission for them to be passed on.  This too is a statistical impossibility.  It just couldn't happen.

But Hitchens was not troubled in the least by the holes in his arguments, or in even engaging in an honest dialogue.  He is simply an arrogant fool who despises religious people and thrives on demeaning faith. 

It was a profound sense of interest and sadness that I read of the rather ridiculous discussion of "faith" hosted by the politically liberal Sojourners group.  The "big three' Democratic candidates were given opportunity to declare and discuss their religious beliefs.

The purportedly evangelical organization seems to value inequality of material wealth as the greatest evil of our time.  Our society is threatened more by poverty than it is by Islamic Jihadists it seems.  (Of course the Jihadists want us  back in the 6th century, a standard of living that  I would consider impoverished, but  what do I know.)

In the eyes of this group, all that matters is "ending poverty".  No one seems to realize that no nation has done more to end poverty than the United States.  Our economic success has fueled the global economy for over 100 years.  Our technological advances have moved all of humanity forward.  And this has been accomplished through a democratic republic committed to individual freedom.

Amazingly, though not surprisingly, they aspire to the view that  the way to accomplish this is to take money from wealthy people and give it to poor people.  They righteously declare this is the ultimate moral question of the day. 

Yet if I read the Bible correctly, when we stand before God, we will be judged according to our faith in Christ not according to how much money we gave away.  ( and don't quote Matthew 25, that passage applies to giving to other believers, not to the world)

If Sojourners cares so much about God's plan, where is the doctrinal statement on their website?  Where is the commitment to the great commission?  Where is repentance, faith in Jesus Christ, and a desire to turn from sin?  Answer, it doesn't matter to them.  All that matters is giving money to poor people.

As a result, politicians who are against basic Biblical values such as family and evangelism  get a free pass as long as they  are  committed to "ending poverty".  That may be a type of faith, but its not Christian. 

Forgive me, but I would rather vote for a Mormon.

It was with no small degree of sadness that I read Frank Pastore's column on why he wouldn't vote for Mitt Romney.  Like so many believers, with good intentions he takes a position that is morally and logically weak and passes it off as the Christian one.

His logic, that a Christian cannot in good conscience vote for a candidate who is a member of a false religion, although seemingly reasonable, fails to withstand any scrutiny.  His statement elevates one particular sin/doctrinal error above others and does not acknowledge the simple fact that there will likely be no candidate on the national stage who is consistently doctrinally sound.  As I wrote in a previous post, there are far more dangerous examples of wrong thinking by politicians than Romney's Mormon beliefs.

Among then-
  "Methodist" John Edwards devalues human life by favoring abortion on Demand, states there is no war on terror, and wants to sanction homosexual unions. 

"Roman Catholic" Nancy Pelosi, supports gay marriage, dons a burqa to in visiting a Muslim country and takes a host of other positons contrary to scripture.

"Roman Catholic" Rudy Giuliani supports abortion rights for women.

"Methodist" Bill Clinton brought infidelity to the White House.

The list of "Christian" politicians who take stands contrary to scripture is unending.  Clearly, religious orthodoxy does not equate with godly outcomes.  So how then do we decide?  Pastore seems to ignore that someone who is led to follow the moral ambiguities in the faith of a "Methodist" such as Edwards or Clinton is every bit as lost as someone following the heresies of Mormonism.  Why does one form of error disqualify a man from being president and another not?

Pastore needs to be reminded that this is a job interview process, not a Patoral search committee.  We as Americans are hiring someone to be our Chief Executive, not someone to be our Pastor, Elder or Deacon.  As with any other job for which I would consider hiring someone, what I want is competence and qualifications.  Faith is not a prerequisite.

As a physician I have encountered some very poor Christian doctors.  Some of the best medicine I have seen practiced is by men whose paganism makes Romney's Mormon beliefs seem conventional.  Although Physicians can have great influence on the thinking of their patients, I would far rather send my sick child to a gifted pagan than an unqualified saint.

Pastore and other Christians need to let go of the thought that countless people will be decieved as a result of Romney's Mormonism.  Almighty God, whose Son declared that the gates of hell could not stand up to a true profession of faith, is certainly capable of furthering His purposes with a Mormon in the White House.  In fact, there is a high probability that the religious questions resultant to Romney's election will open more doors for Evangelism, not less.  I welcome the opportunity to explain to other's what true Christianity is.  That truth will overcome any weight the presidency would provide.
       

On the newswires this weekend was a frightening report that a survey of American Muslims revealed that 26% of Muslim men between the ages of 18 and 30 thought that it was justified under some circumstances to use suicide bombers in defense of Islam.

Let that dwell in your mind for a few minutes.  One out of four Muslim young men enjoying the freedoms of our nation can envision a scenario in which they would blow themselves up to kill others.  Not in defense of our nation, but in defense of Islam.  2% of these young men replied that suicide bombings are often justifiable.

I can only wonder as to what "threats against Islam" would justify such deadly attacks.  Cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed?  Books such as "The Satanic Verses"?  We must remember that the young men responding live in a nation where they are free to worship with out limitations or restrictions.  They have a freedom to speak out in favor of their faith and against the country in which they live, yet they can imagine a need for suicide bombings to defend their faith.  How can anyone proclaim Islam as a peaceful religion? I would wager everything I own that no survey of any other major religious group in our country would find 0.1% of its adherents that embraced such a view.

If a survey of Southern Baptists yielded similar results the outcry would be overwhelming.  The Southern Baptist convention would react in horror and take immediate and definitive steps to root out the problem.

Yet how did the media respond?  USA Today titles its article "Poll: American Muslims reject extremes", and no where quantifies the number of young men with such extreme views.  I do not understand how anyone seeing these survey results cannot react with a sense of foreboding and fear.  The enemy is among us.

At the annual Medical Group golf tournament today I was taken aback when my playing partner decided to ask me something he had always wanted to ask a "religious person".  He was very proud of his question and the challenge he thought it presented to someone of faith.  His question- "If Jesus were alive today would he be a Democrat or Republican?"

My answer- "Neither- He wouldn't care", took him by suprise.  Wouldn't Jesus care abour poor people?  Wouldn't Jesus be bothered by the fact that one person can make $100 million a year while someone else starves to death?

Again I replied, "He wouldn't even address such things."  I explained that when He was on earth, Jesus wasn't very concerned about the temporary state of government oppression.  He did not speak out, to our knowledge, against Rome, slavery, taxes or social injustice.  He didn't feed every hungry person, or heal every sick person.  (If you doubt this, remember only 1 man was healed at the pool of Bethesda.)  Jesus was concerned about a person's eternal soul and standing with God.  He was concerned with wrong thinking about salvation, righteousness and God.  He was concerned about hypocrisy (not because it was the worst sin, but because it signified a lost and unrepentant heart that could lead others astray).  When confronted with questions about Rome, He dodged them.

None of my points made sense to Him.  I think this is because, like so many people who do not have true faith, he was concerned totally about this life, and injustice as he defined it, and not at all thinking about eternal matters.  For him, it is all about equality and fairness.  (Yet he was acceting a free round $120 of golf, free beverages and enjoying this all in the Paradise that is Southern Califoprnia-  a scenario that 95% of humanity could never hope for.  How fair is that?)

OU rperception of fairness could not be more irrelevant. One of my goals in life is to get people to understand how what matters is people living consistent with God's eternal perspective.  When we wallow in discussions on issues such as Jesus' political affiliation, we miss the greater points.  We are all sinners, and we all need a Savior.  We are all selfish and self serving.  Whether we are republican or Democrat, when compared to eternal issues, is just not important.

Our favorite waiter/busboy at the local Souplantation is from Mexico.  We are regulars, pathetically so.  (Our first visit was when our son was 5.  He ate some Caesar salad, his first intake of a green substance not produced by his own nose.  So we kept coming back.)
Manuel works harder than any other employee in the place, or in most other places we have been.  He does so with a remarkably cheerful attitude and dignity.  He, more than anything else, is why we have continued there regularly.  In the 12 years we have known him his english has improved very little if at all.  Although we genuinely like him, we have never been able to engage in anything beyond the most simple of conversations.  ( How is your family, did you see the last World Cup game? Etc.)
I have never asked Manuel, and never would, if he was here legally.  At this point in time, I don't really care.  I know he pays his taxes, payroll through the company, sales tax on his purchases, and for the last two years property on the home his two jobs allow him to afford.  even if he were here illegally, I think he should be welcome.  I have no problems giving a form of amnesty to Manuel and his family.
Sure, he should have to come clean if he wants the privileges of legality and he should bear the burden  of covering the expenses of his normalization.  A fee of $5000 would be excessive and so far beyond his reach as to force him to remain in the shadows.  Something around $2000 seems more appropriate.
In spite of my support of Manuel and the millions of others like him, he does not tell the whole story.  For every positive success such as Manuel there are others who don't succeed.  Lacking skills, initiative or opportunity, they came pursuing a dream that has little chance of being fulfilled.  Lacking regular employment, they stand outside home improvement stores looking for day jobs that provide poor pay and no benefits, and for which they are paid under the table.  For many, they are forced to share cramped apartments with other struggling immigrants.  These stressful and unhealthy conditions lead to a multitude of problems for them and for our society that graciously attempts to cure and treat their illnesses and educate their children.
We need an immigration plan that addresses both of these groups of people, the Manuels and the others, as well as protects us from those who would do us harm.  For those of us who aren't clouded by years of politics as done in Washington, it seems rather simple.  Find a way to allow productive and honorable immigrants such as Manuel to become a true member of society, and secure the borders to guarantee that we are not overburdened with those for whom no true hope exists or job is waiting and not endangered by the few who have harmful intent.

Most Americans are not stupid.  We understand that there is no feasable way to immediately deport 12 million people.  We also understand that many of these people are "productive" members of society.  When we are told that many of these illegal immigrants pay taxes, we know that this is true.

We also understand that there are a number of low-paying jobs that would not be filled without this work force.  (But we are also pretty certain that there aren't nearly as many such jobs as we are being told, just ask those who now work in the infamous meat-packing plant.)

We are also aware that our country as had a de facto open arms policy toward immigrants, a sort of "don't ask, don't tell" system of immigration enforcement.  We get it that it is hard to fault someone who, wanting to provide for their family in Mexico, comes across a porous border to the job that is waiting for them.  But these aren't the only people who are coming.

If the only people coming were honest, hard working individuals accepting the jobs no one else wants, or for whom no suitable applicant was available,  no one would be complaining.  We resent being accused of bigotry and intolerance, and being told we have no feelings for these honest, hard working people.  It's not them we are most worried about. 

What we are asking for is simple;  We want a way to only allow honest, hard working people in, to make sure that they are such people before they come, that they are needed, and then to keep everyone else out.  The post 9/11 world in which we live demands no less.   How hard can this be?  Build a fence, enforce the borders, track individuals on temporary visas.  Keep us safe.

When that is done, we can begin talking about what to do with those already here.  Once we are secure, our leaders will find the public more than willing to accept a reasonable solution to this second part of the problem.

Rudy finishes first thanks to Ron Paul.  The rest of the night for him was a B-.
McCain was less stiff, but what he said about issues (McCain-Feingold, immigration and interrogation), doesn't hold up to scrutiny.  (But do voters actuall scrutinize?)
Romney looked and sounded smooth, and his cerebral replies resonate with me, but folks like me aren't the voters he needs to win over.
Huckabee's "Edwards in a beauty shop" line was one of the best debate lines EVER.
Duncan Hunter would be an excellent VP, but wouldn't help the ticket enough to get the nod.  A cabinet post would be nice if we win. Someone this sharp needs  a national stage.
The rest can get off the stage so we can hear what we need to hear.