Sons and Daughters

As a parent, there is nothing quite like seeing your kids become adults that you admire and like to be around.

This past week, mother and daughter (Chris and Hannah) joined with a few thousand other Southwest Missourians in a peaceful demonstration as POTUS #45 made a brief stop in Springfield. This was their second joint demonstration. Perhaps, one day I'll be bailing them out of jail.

I'm happy that Hannah has found her political voice and is willing to exercise it in the public arena. She is articulate (like you'd expect of an English major) and can clearly state her position and her objections to the position of others. She is not hateful, but she can be a bit fierce at times. If you are an underprivileged or disadvantaged person, she is on your side and will fight for your rights and benefit.

Aaron is also someone that I am quite proud of and I am looking forward to seeing him next week as I begin my long motorcycle trek. The following is his response to the Nashville Statement that you may have heard about. If you haven't read it -- you can do so, here: https://cbmw.org/nashville-statement/

This is put together from his response on twitter, his social media network of choice.

 Via Twitter @aaronbaronhill: "Ok. Here goes. My thoughts on the Nashville Statement. It's lazy theology. It does not include a single explicit scripture reference outside of the portion of Ps. 100:3 before the preamble. It does implicitly reference many times the practical theology of the charter signers. I argue that by not explicitly referencing scripture throughout the charter signers elevate their held beliefs, and this statement above the Word of God which is exactly what the Statement accuses the LGBTQ+ targets of doing: putting their own desires above God's.This is to say nothing of whether I am in agreement or disagreement with the content, but EVEN IF they are 100% in line with God on this they have still idolized their own wisdom and knowledge above the very Word of God by not citing where the biblical basis is for this. I'm not going to go into great detail how I feel about the content here, but I'll say there are parts I affirm and parts I deny. But all of it is lazy theology, and even lazy theology that is grounded in fact destroys more than it helps. God has strong feelings about when his people attempt to do a good thing the wrong way. In 2 Sam 6, David commissions a team of men and oxen to bring the Ark of the Covenant back to Jerusalem. Rather than having it carried by Levites, he had it pulled by a team of oxen. The cart it is pulled on breaks and Uzzah tries to save it by catching it. God killed him immediately. It was good for David to bring the Ark to Jerusalem, but he did it the wrong way & 1 of his men was punished. Maybe if David had consulted the scriptures before authorizing a movement like this Uzzah wouldn't have died. It is not easy to tell from the Nashville Statement whether or not the charter signers consulted scripture. I hope for their sake and the Church's that the punishment is not as severe as in the case of Uzzah. Finally, I pray for my friends who are feeling less human today because of this statement. I love you and so does the God of the universe."

I like his response in that it address the theology of the statement (by theologians) rather than attacking the statement directly. It is well thought out and distilled into several 140 characters or less statements -- brief and to the point. (I should mention that the story of David returning the Ark to Jerusalem is one of my favorites!)

Anyway -- I have things to do this morning (like go to the lake for the day).
I just wanted to take a moment to brag on my kids.

Proud dad,
John <><

PS -- If you are enjoying this Labor Day weekend or the benefits provided by organized labor (and you are), thank a Union member!