Christianity 101

Two Punches?

According to this news story, the preacher kept on preaching:

A pastor was standing in front of a group of people when one man rears back and punches him right in the eye. It happened over the weekend in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Victory Christian Center’s Pastor Billy Joe Daugherty continued his sermon with blood coming out of his eye.

The next sentence in the report states blandly:

Church members subdued his attacker.

Then we have this photo of the attacker:

To this “casual observer” it appears at least two punches landed during that service.

Tit for tat.

Ooooops.

What’s There to Say?

Here’s an AP story that captures my attention, although I suspect it won’t be for long:

A 16-year-old boy accused of killing a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agent has escaped from a juvenile prison for the fifth time in three years — just as he promised, an official said Saturday.

Herlan Colindres, a street gang member implicated in 16 other killings….

He’s only sixteen and he’s already accused of murder?

Sixteen of them?

That makes at least sixteen dead tragedies and at least one living one.

What else is there to say?

To feel?

To do?

Got (God’s) Love?




Noordin Mohamad Top (maybe)

The Star (Malaysia) offers this AP story:

A video found in the hide-out of one of Asia’s most wanted militants shows a masked man threatening attacks against the United States, Britain and Australia.

Police suspect the man in the video could be Malaysian fugitive Noordin Mohamad Top, considered a key leader of the al-Qaida-linked Southeast Asian terror group Jemaah Islamiyah.

Noordin has been accused of direct involvement in at least four deadly bombings in Indonesia, including the 2002 and 2005 suicide attacks on the resort island of Bali that together killed 222 people, many of them foreign tourists.

OK, Christians. How do you pray for a man like this? Or would we even consider praying for him?

You could even right-click the image (in Windows XP anyway) and select to have it be your wallpaper. As a reminder, you know.

I’m sure this man has lots of hate directed toward him. What he needs is God’s love directed toward him.

Yeah, I know. Easier written than done.

Didn’t He Know the Risk?!

From The Washington Times this story of commitment:

A court sentenced a teacher to 40 months in prison and 750 lashes for “mocking religion” after he discussed the Bible and praised Jews, a Saudi newspaper reported yesterday.

Al-Madina newspaper said secondary-school teacher Mohammad al-Harbi, who will be flogged in public, was taken to court by his colleagues and students.

He was charged with promoting a “dubious ideology, mocking religion, saying the Jews were right, discussing the Gospel and preventing students from leaving class to wash for prayer,” the newspaper said.

I wonder what this man’s testimony is.

Oh, and before anyone goes off on what the “religion of peace” does to its opponents, wait.

Remember the Crusades. Remember the Catholic-Protestant battles of not so long ago.

That said, I do believe there is a substantial spiritual and moral difference between genuine Islam and genuine Christianity.

The question for me is simple: Is my faith (and subsequent life) an accurate reflection of the Lord Jesus?

Above all, love God!