tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-53999398540401879922024-02-26T03:30:17.375-08:00Man Talking Man Stuff!!!Controversial Christianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01592854534440021411noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5399939854040187992.post-48363896653855535592018-09-13T18:29:00.000-07:002018-09-13T18:29:53.716-07:00Looking over the Horizon
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Looking over the Horizon, seeing the
ominous clouds set over a twilight sky, what treasures exist behind the
weather, what life can be led stepping into the unknown. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The sky beckons, the clouds beckon, the
storm beckons and the peace beckons. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Somewhere, somewhere out there, lies
love, lies God clothed in mystery, wrapped in jealousy, hidden from our eyes,
lost to our hearts. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">It rains softly, God weeps, but God is
smiling too. He hears my lonely prayer, my quiet complaint, my heart's desire,
and He smiles ... <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Over the Horizon my beloved waits for
me, softly, silently, patiently ...<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
Controversial Christianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01592854534440021411noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5399939854040187992.post-73122052709275872822016-09-23T09:37:00.001-07:002018-09-17T20:17:20.568-07:00Decent Men Come Last<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">All those who know me, friends, not
so much my family as there isn’t so much of us left, and even acquaintances,
know that I have issues with women. They are not so serious anymore, and I pray
regularly about it. It is mixed up with a lot regrets, sadness and what
might-have-beens.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">It has been said many times, that
decent men, genuine men, even shy men and men who wear their hearts on their
sleeves, come last. All the ladies say they want a decent man to care about
them and treat them right, get married and have children with and be loved and
cherished and cared for. But that’s all baloney, right??!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Women, and it seems there are multitudes of
them, go for bad boys, what I like to call, possibly slightly nastily, the ‘beaters,
cheaters and down the streeters’, men who beat women, cheat on them and
disappear down the street and turn up again when they feel like it.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I used to feel jealous of such guys, they way
they didn’t care one way or the other about the women who would seem to throw
themselves at them and cling on to those men, when I couldn’t even get a woman
to look at me no matter what I did. Now, I tend to think that such
relationships as they are, are really two self destructive people coming into
each other’s orbit, with mutually assured destruction as the result. This is
not self righteous judgement, and it is not just blaming the woman for being
stupid or the bloke for being a predatory a**ehole, either. But, being that
decent men are usually a little more sensitive, a little more shy, a little
more genuine, not in every case obviously, but generally, the decent men are
either pushed aside by women, ignored one too many times or simply switch off
from the whole overplayed dating game/cattle market scene and stop looking. So,
the decent men disappear leaving the field wide open for the bad boys. The
women, who say in one breath they ‘really really would like to find a decent
caring man’ but perversely choose a nasty one get what they want, the bad boys
who treat women dreadfully get what they want, and the decent men and decent
women for that matter leave the field like dejected heroes and heroines, the
knight without a fair maiden, and the fair maiden without a knight. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Dramatic? Well, love is dramatic,
and being hurt in this sphere of life can leave deep emotional pain and cast
long shadows over our lives. It certainly has over mine. God has allowed me to
suffer. ‘<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">11 O afflicted one,
storm-tossed, and not comforted, I am about to set your stones in antimony, and
lay your foundations with sapphires. 12 I will make your pinnacles of rubies,
your gates of jewels, and all your wall of precious stones. 13 All your children
shall be taught by the LORD, and great shall be the prosperity of your
children. 14 In righteousness you shall be established; you shall be far from
oppression, for you shall not fear; and from terror, for it shall not come near
you.</i>’ (Isaiah 54:11-15) Even when God allows you and me to suffer, even
suffer grievously and for a very long time, there is a purpose and there will
be a good outcome to it all. It may not feel like it at the time, but as long
as we have faith in God, and keep the channels of communication open, He will
deliver us. His promises are not empty promises, believe me. Better still,
believe Him. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I want to talk about something that
has made me think for a while. It involves unrequited love, a well known
English bank, me and a little lady. This is not meant to be funny, and nor is
it upsetting really. But this is often the kind of ‘romantic dalliance’ I have
had throughout my life. In the past, this did upset me greatly. Now, I tend to
reflect on the whole matter a bit more. I have had a few nice girlfriends, I
dillied and dallied a little on the singles scene, which in the UK is often not
much more than going out with your mates (this is pretty much the same for
groups of men or women), getting drunk, sometimes gloriously so, and hoping to
meet someone of the opposite sex for laughs, tickles and maybe more, after the
bacchanalian orgy that has just commenced. It’s understandable that by the time
many of us hit our late 20s or early 30s, we get somewhat fed up with the whole
British dating scene as it is. I certainly did, and many years ago.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Suffice to say, it isn’t really a
great way to meet someone. It’s a great way to get drunk, sleep around
(sometimes) and get drawn into an ever decreasing circle of diminishing
returns. And, although on the surface it can all seem like one long party time,
in the end it is emptiness. It is also often the pursuit of people who don’t really
have values or a genuine purpose in life, and may end up in a person pursuing
an addictive lifestyle, which I would say ultimately ends in self destruction
of some kind and starts with a person pursuing an illusion, of which the more
they seek the less real it becomes.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah, I was
in a branch of my local NatWest bank about a year ago or so, and needed help
with a password for something involving the bank and a bonus scheme to collect
points for elephant safaris or spending a romantic evening with Bill Clinton,
or something, and I needed to ask one of the bank tellers, which I did. Now,
both these bank workers (we don’t say bank tellers in the UK!) I know by face
quite well, and they are both female and I have to say I found them, and still
do, very attractive women, demure, obviously hard working, intelligent, the
type of women most men really want to meet, be with, spend time with and fall
in love with. Now, so far so good. I have to be perfectly honest, I liked both
of them and wished somehow I could talk to either one of them and go on a date,
but that seemed highly unlikely. I don’t know why, really. It’s not even so
much shyness as how, when and why. I think most people know what I mean there.
Anyway, there was also something else, too, which I found a little strange, and
with this we get to the nub of the story. One of the women there that I liked
is quite petite and has a very pretty face, the type of woman I have thought
wouldn’t give me a second look most of the time. In this case, it seemed to be
the same. Each time I came into the bank, not only wouldn’t this bank worker
look at me, she actually seemed to make a point of never meeting my eyes at all
and looked away from me every time I entered the bank. I figured quite
naturally and understandably that she had no interest whatsoever in me and gave
it little thought, other than I found her attractive and wanted to know her.
This went on for a few months, until the aforementioned password incident,
where I asked the other woman for help, and then Adele came out, told me her
name and said she would help me if I came in again. It was only later that I
suspected she might have been breaking the ice, but at the same time I was so
used to being literally ignored by her that I didn’t give it a second thought.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">What I am really curious about is,
why if in the end she liked me, which I never once suspected, didn’t she at
least look at me, even a little smile? I am truly confused about the way many
women work when it comes to romance. It seems they can stand next to a guy,
glance occasionally, even pretend to ignore someone, but it seems beyond so
many women just to say hello. I will also say this too. I think many men these
days when they see an attractive woman they like, are unsure whether to
approach, not just through fear of being rejected or making a fool of
themselves, but also the bigger fear of being accused of being a pest or
stalker. I am being serious here. The accepted norm of romance is the man has
to approach the woman and put himself in the firing line, so to speak. Many
women can be hostile in this situation, for no apparent reason, or humiliate
the man, or just be unpleasant. Obviously this can be exacerbated by alcohol
which is why I don’t drink socially anymore and I don’t go to pubs or clubs
anymore either. But women seem to think that it is easy for men to make the
first move. Sometimes it isn’t.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">So I believe truly decent men come
last in love and often many other things, but I’m fine with that now. Not that
I’m the most decent or perfect man, nor do I think it is any different for
decent women, but as a Christian I accept the world the way it is, fallen and
corrupt and we as human beings, whatever we do or believe and however we act,
morally or immorally, are going to be or certainly have been victims of a
fallen world. So, there has to be forgiveness for people and we all have to
make allowances as others make allowances for us. We also have to forgive, as
God forgives us.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">So, very often decent men do come
last. But sometimes, good things come to those who wait patiently. God will
reward all those who put faith and hope in Him, and of course remain faithful
to Him too.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">‘<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">30 ...many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.</i>’
(Matthew 19:30)</span></span></div>
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">
</h3>
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">
Update as of 17th September, 2018:</h3>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A year ago, or thereabouts, I started talking online to a very beautiful, sexy and intelligent Christian Filipina woman. This April, I visited her in the Philippines, because we both wanted to see how we felt about each other face to face. I fell head over heels in love with her, and thank God she did with me, once we met! I love her passionately, I think she is sexy, beautiful, young looking for her age, even though she is still young anyway(!), I love her funny family, and I love her friends, and I love the Philippines and I love Filipino food!!! Oh, I love her cat, Parker, too. He reminds me of me, but I can't really say why??!</span></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">God has brought me the perfect woman for me, and I won't lie, I prayed for a woman with beauty on the inside and beauty on the outside! But, so what? I love the bones of her, and I am going to marry her. So, there is a happy ending, and though often decent men, and decent women too, may come last and be pushed aside by the arrogant, self important status and money seeking types, patience has brought me my soulmate, lover, mother of our children and life partner, and there is a happy ending, after all.</span> </span></div>
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Controversial Christianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01592854534440021411noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5399939854040187992.post-32171696824398487332016-09-09T10:22:00.002-07:002018-09-15T08:52:24.833-07:00John Eldredge and Masculine Christianity<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Political correctness in the last
twenty years or so, and perhaps quite a lot longer in some forms, has seen the
explosion of diversity and multiculturalism and the promotion of many ethnic
minority rights and other what are seen as minority rights, too. Masculinity
particularly has been attacked, diminished and sidelined, and in some senses so
too have men. White men are a kind of all purpose bogeyman now, and to be
honest some of that is not without reason. Men in general have been on the
receiving end of all kinds of societal anger, resentment and hate, again, not
without some justification. Masculine values and ideals are also under fire
from many quarters too, and are seen as a problem. Of course, many men from all
walks of life, ethnic backgrounds and many countries feel marginalised, and
probably many women feel that it is not before time. Of course, within this
fall other factors such as class, racism, nationalism and other things, not all
men being equal after all. But, in short, men, masculinity and masculine values
seem almost superfluous, almost redundant and not needed anymore. Men have
become emasculated.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2Gx2Jnv3lMBmEQVMlMRgRtzFEZGSHBQtSqGhng1acyvCF6mtercGbz5aViG1BQoVfdKZGHcQ3hoekG_mv1CSNGKL6oBZHf9BZYoZBSt1xekUeEhqh0fUPu1uaEKfvs95I1iKO8rwqhqW6/s1600/Charles_Hawtrey.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2Gx2Jnv3lMBmEQVMlMRgRtzFEZGSHBQtSqGhng1acyvCF6mtercGbz5aViG1BQoVfdKZGHcQ3hoekG_mv1CSNGKL6oBZHf9BZYoZBSt1xekUeEhqh0fUPu1uaEKfvs95I1iKO8rwqhqW6/s1600/Charles_Hawtrey.jpg" /></a></span></div>
<br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Now some people, even some men, may
say the emasculation of men is not before time, and the feminisation of society
is a welcome change. Some may even say that more women in power, in positions
of authority and in politics, business and other spheres of human activity that
have often been the sole preserve of usually powerful wealthy upper and middle
class white men is a good thing, too. But, to be fair, many institutions tend
to be dominated by men whoever they are and whatever background they come from.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">But, didn’t God create male and
female, and didn’t he do that for a purpose? Did He also create us to be
different, as well? Knowing the trauma and conflict making us different genders
and different colours and ethnicities would cause, just why did God create us
all different? I suppose that’s another story. But it’s definitely obvious that
male and female are very different, apart from the obvious differences. Most
men tend to react differently to things than most women. Men usually have
different abilities to women, and often have different interests to women too,
although that is changing. Men can sometimes be solitary and ‘lone wolves’
whereas women tend towards empathy and sharing and caring. Of course, these are
certainly not set in stone, and to be honest, how much of the general emotional
characteristics that men tend to have and women tend to have are actually
innate, or taught and socialised into us over the course of our childhood and
later lives is most definitely open to question. What clever people might call
the nature vs nurture argument. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I know that like with many things,
masculinity is not something that is fully understood, but what I have a
problem with is that there is now such animosity towards the idea of
masculinity and so obviously to the idea of men. Many women may honestly say,
‘not before time’, but I think this in many senses is just the age old societal
anger turning its ire to one group or another, and then in time to another
group. Men and masculinity in general at this time are not flavour of the
month. But, is this fair and is it acceptable? Should society demean masculine
values and promote feminine values, if that is in actual fact what is happening?
My view on this is quite simple. In the same way people vote for another political
party when they become absolutely sick and tired of the one they have been
voting for and not getting much from them, anger turns against one group or
another when things are not going well politically or economically and badly in
other ways. That can sometimes be immigrants, black people, Muslims, white
working class people and so on. In the England of the 70s and 80s, Black
people, Pakistanis and Irish people, women and gay people were the butt of
jokes, casual sexism, casual racism and even violent racism. This hatred could
be called unreconstructed as it wasn’t seen as completely malign, although
those on the receiving end will probably beg to differ. In short, it was
probably as much a lack of understanding than it was wilful and malignant and
purposely directed. Although again, I would suggest that extreme racism and
extreme prejudice has to come from focussed hate. But many people, as is human
nature, just went along with it. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Today, political correctness has
challenged such racism and prejudice and has turned its ire on the supposed
architect of such prejudices, which is men, usually white working class men. It
seems that greater, and self designated respectable, society always needs a
group to point its respectable finger at, without fear of retaliation, the
media itself being part of what seems to be respectable society. But as with
many things ‘respectable’, there is always an agenda to shift society’s anger
or frustration or the harsh economic realities sometimes imposed on the poor in
some way, and usually it is shifted on a group that is either poor and can’t
really fight back, or a group of some kind already resented in some way.
Attacking the working class is quite an interesting move, because they are not
really a minority and it cannot technically be called racism either, although I
will dispute this at a later date, which seems to be acceptable to some,
particularly those who seem to be quite vocally opposed to racism, homophobia
and sexism. I truly find this rather strange, but not really surprising if I’m
being honest. The white male, particularly but certainly not exclusively the
working class variety, of which I am one of the said species, is the new
scapegoat. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtHTKVGVi01O08j1w8WA3CBPwpse014rv-ANeRHVBTd1zh5xFzWAEP_sLsi3UXcMRW6XgTEhj7ltUob6AzrTHqnNE909PTA0NcX0KtZjkobH7cAm3MPrIdNygXwxNNGurPpmXis_lSE6BQ/s1600/ffnedkelly.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtHTKVGVi01O08j1w8WA3CBPwpse014rv-ANeRHVBTd1zh5xFzWAEP_sLsi3UXcMRW6XgTEhj7ltUob6AzrTHqnNE909PTA0NcX0KtZjkobH7cAm3MPrIdNygXwxNNGurPpmXis_lSE6BQ/s320/ffnedkelly.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Working class masculinity is
portrayed as negatively, and usually often as erroneously as racists portray black
people or Jews or immigrants, or virulent sexists portray men or woman, or
homophobes portray those who are gay. The working class are almost always
portrayed by middle class writers or journalists or opinion formers, and very
rarely portrayed by those who are or have working class backgrounds themselves.
This often results in what are really extremes being portrayed as normal, so we
either have the shaven headed, tattoo covered thug with can of strong beer in
hand, or sometimes the saintly version who bears up and remains cheerful no
matter how crap things are. One thing most of those writers seem to forget is we
are all just human beings at the end of the day. But working class masculinity
is seen now as almost completely negative. Of course, many of us rebel against
this, but those of us who are smart, rebel in a smart way by being more
masculine, looking more masculine, not being afraid to be men, and even grow
beards these days! Men should be men. Women should be women. Never the twain
shall meet!? Well, no, not exactly.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">The real perniciousness of course
is that the supposedly clever, informed and clued up in the media, politics and
the world of academia, particularly in the US and the UK, instead of
challenging stereotypes and prejudices either pretend they don’t exist, subtly
and sometimes not so subtly go along with those prejudices and don’t allow any
real debate on issues around class discrimination, racism, sexism, homophobia
and the like unless it comes from a very narrow politically correct agenda. In
short, the people who claim to be liberal and open minded have become some of
the most narrow and closed minded and illiberal people around. Some of them
scream racist and fascist at people now merely because they have a difference
of opinion from what a friend of mine called the New Orthodoxy, which I suppose
is the idea that if you aren’t an ultra politically correct roving anti racist,
anti sexist and anti homophobic champion of the oppressed, you don’t deserve to
be heard. I’m waiting next to hear of books being burnt because they aren’t
politically correct enough, or because the writer has had the temerity to hold
an original and different thought from the PC Thought Police, on their quest to
save the world from fascism and intolerance, except their own fascism and
intolerance of course.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Yes, we do seem to have wondered a
little off the topic of masculinity, but I see that as resentment has turned
against the often racist, sexist and xenophobic nature of Western society,
particularly the UK and the US, the political class and the well placed liberal
opinion formers have found a target to blame it all on. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">My view, as a white working class
male, who also happens to suffer with chronic fatigue syndrome, has suffered
with bouts of depression, unemployment, identity crises here and there, and now
the ire of respectable society for being a white working class male who is not
in any way ashamed of that, with an ability to grow a fairly good beard (now
surely the last gasp of desperate masculine defiance?!) is to simply walk with
the Lord. Whoever is persecuted in this world, for no other reason than simply
being who they are without harming others becomes like Jesus when they act like
Jesus. The world system may target one scapegoat after another to justify
economic divisions and social and economic apartheids of many kinds, and
political establishments and elites and the media will always seek to justify
in however subtle a way they can such unfairness and injustice, but this is an
unfair and unprincipled world where money is worshipped long before God is, and
human beings come a very poor second to the worship of greed, success and self
interest of many kinds, and that will never change.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">We all, whoever we are and whatever
injustice and persecution we may face in this world, have a saviour we can rely
on. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">’16 Be joyful always; 17 pray
continually; 18 give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for
you in Christ Jesus.</i>’ (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Masculinity isn’t a dirty word! Neither
for that matter is femininity. Like it or not, God made us different for a
reason. If men become women, and women become men, where will we all be? I am
not judging people who struggle with who they are and wish in those rare and
extreme cases to change sex, but the majority of us who are just happy to be
men or women but feel that we should be constantly changing, constantly fearful
of every new thing and social trend that says this is now acceptable but that
isn’t, and then something else comes along saying the exact opposite. As a
Christian, I don’t want or need changeable humanistic values or ideals, because
no matter how good they are or start out, they always deteriorate eventually.
Look at political correctness, or the most zealous feminists or even the
proliferation of equal rights, which in that particular case hasn’t really
changed that much. They all eventually become corrupted and sometimes vehicles
for ambitious people for their own ends, and often against other groups of
people.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">God’s values do not change, neither
are they the personal or special rights of any group of people, even long
standing devout practising Christians for that matter, they are unchangeable
laws that benefit those who obey them and condemn and bring to judgement all
who arrogantly flout them.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Away from all that stuff, I really
like to read John Eldredge’s very Christian and very masculine books that
celebrate his Christian faith and celebrate the idea of men being unashamedly
masculine without having to apologise or make any excuses for being men, and
being masculine men as well. But also being Christian men, too. There is this
growing idea, probably more so in the West, that men, especially Christian men,
should be emasculated men. Yes, Jesus was said to be meek and mild, but this
isn’t the only blueprint for Godly masculinity. Meek and mild is not
necessarily weak and emasculated for that matter, either. John Eldredge says
that we should reclaim our masculinity as Christian men, should see that as God
is untamed as we men cannot be tamed either. That appeals to me. Obviously,
becoming Hells Angels or football hooligans or pub brawlers is out of the
question for Christian men, but going beyond the humdrum of emasculated manhood
certainly isn’t!! I love being with blokes, having a laugh, not worrying about
making, or usually hearing an inappropriate or off colour joke now and then, being
loud and laughing even louder. But, I love my own space, being on my own,
walking in country places surrounded by trees, greenery, hills, mountains in
the distance and the feeling that I can walk wherever I want without a care.
Oh, and I do like the beauty of a woman, too. I may add that Hells Angels and
footy hooligans and pub brawlers may enjoy the peace, freedom, forgiveness and
new life in Jesus Christ, too.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I’ve been on this planet for nearly
50 years now. Sometimes I’ve lived as a man, sometimes I’ve lived as a half
man. It’s like I’ve never lived. Well, Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt at
80, so I’ve got some time yet. But, God made me a man, and a masculine man.
It’s where my heart has always been. No longer should us men be ashamed of our
masculinity.</span></span></div>
Controversial Christianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01592854534440021411noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5399939854040187992.post-20297805859822567982016-08-02T10:13:00.000-07:002018-09-15T08:53:31.400-07:00God Loves Me... Even if Everyone Else thinks I’m a ****<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Ah, to be cool like Steve McQueen, or Idris Elba, or Robert
de Niro, Or Al Pacino, or one of the great Shakespearean actors like Laurence
Olivier, or Paul Scofield, or one of the cool musicians like Jimi Hendrix, or
Miles Davis. Oh, to be cool like one of those fellas!!! But, alas, most of us
are not, even though we all cling to a little bit of coolness, a little bit of
mystery, a little bit of sly hipsterism. Well, most do, Well, some do. Well, I
do. Well I try to. Sometimes. Not all the time. Most days, not all.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">When I am alone, I wish to share my thoughts and my life with
others. When I am with others, I sometimes want to be alone. On my best days, I
muddle through. On my worst days, I go off into worlds of my own imagination.
Not sure where I will end up. Until I need a cup of tea, and then I fall
quickly back to earth again. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I am, and was for a very long time, socially awkward. You
wouldn’t really know it to look at me, but sooner or later, you would notice.
The thing is, now I don’t care. I crack silly jokes, I laugh too loud, and I
sometimes make a spectacle of myself. But didn’t I just tell you, I just don’t
care?<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">It’s cool to be socially awkward! I spent a lot of my life
wishing I was someone else, and now I am glad to be me, and no one else. I
spent half of my life running away from me. Now I’m not running anymore. I’ve
spent half my life thinking that people just didn’t want to know me. Well, God
does, so that is all I need at this time. I could be extremely angry at the
people who treated me badly in the past, one of those guys who walk around like
they are ready to strike like a coiled snake. But, there’s too many people knocking
around like that these days. I don’t want to be one of them.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I am a misfit. I am one on my own. They definitely broke the
mould when they made me. I’m the spare part. I’m the one that doesn’t fit in.
I’m like nobody else. There is nobody else like me. I wanted to fit in. Now I
don’t. Take me or leave me. Accept me or reject me. Like me or hate me. I don’t
care. I am socially awkward. Maybe the socially awkward shall inherit the
earth?<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Once, I used to hate myself. I’m still not sure how I feel
about myself now. But God loves me, even if everyone else thinks I’m a ****.<o:p></o:p></span></span>Controversial Christianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01592854534440021411noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5399939854040187992.post-71196503162643030672016-07-20T10:14:00.000-07:002018-09-15T08:59:12.794-07:00Men’s Issues<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">What are men’s issues, what are the things important to men,
and what moves us and what are the things men often like?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Some men are gentle; does this make them lesser men?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No, I don’t think so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some men, like me, are a curious mix of tough
and gentle, we’re city boys used to seeing macho guys, some with tattoos and
shaven heads and used to watching our backs in the tougher parts of cities. Cities
call for a kind of toughness, but they also call for a kind of urbane smartness
and refinement; many of us have these two qualities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’re tough because of where we grew up, but
perhaps we’re gentle too, maybe because we’re Christian men and maybe because
we see the folly of violence.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">If you’re a working class male, or you grew up in a working
class city or council estate or environment, you’re probably used to seeing
violent people and the occasional violent situation and you might be used to seeing
the limited horizons some working class people have and what this can mean for
men: unemployment, drifting, getting involved with the wrong crowd, indulging
in drink or even drugs. I’m not suggesting that only working class men are
involved in these kinds of things as they can affect all different kinds of
people from all walks of life, but that for poorer men, this can be their
lifestyle because it’s the only one they can cling to, and when men have
nothing else in their lives, they can doggedly cling to a lifestyle that to
most everyone else appears harmful, unhelpful, life-limiting and even
dangerous.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinfJZcTkIh1C37cW2rblbX-kdGtv50a1nxiaayo84gF0xW14nX_rkuRptidj7hP8C-wr3_11np6KL_S9mH4EmAjAIFObpw2kS2j1XTQb3fMO5wGtXJ9IR3YzgDOh4KTT7p7eP_8DyLzdHy/s1600/film-world__la-haine-338--detail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinfJZcTkIh1C37cW2rblbX-kdGtv50a1nxiaayo84gF0xW14nX_rkuRptidj7hP8C-wr3_11np6KL_S9mH4EmAjAIFObpw2kS2j1XTQb3fMO5wGtXJ9IR3YzgDOh4KTT7p7eP_8DyLzdHy/s320/film-world__la-haine-338--detail.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Nothing in life is permanent-just when you think you’ve got
something pegged, then everything changes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Life changes, society changes, people change, situations change and life
in all its splendour just keeps on going whatever happens.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">The lucky men find in life what makes them successful or what
makes them happy, and they pursue it, and so subsequently find their thing in
life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No doubt there are many more men
who struggle to make their mark in life, still trying to figure it all our and
sometimes going from one thing to another and never quite finding just what it
is they want; that sums up me anyway.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxQh4LqWzyQ17OmtTwTRzx88dxSXtISfAFd7a3RrCOjRnfEoCxWZvXk6KWYx0OFwhUTIWF4gIhB8xudVmwJYPZX4ijocvkgOb5nWfDJtDxZnAxpzGjB45DORi0FQPqLuECoQXCzVFsGgN6/s1600/ch_intro.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="135" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxQh4LqWzyQ17OmtTwTRzx88dxSXtISfAFd7a3RrCOjRnfEoCxWZvXk6KWYx0OFwhUTIWF4gIhB8xudVmwJYPZX4ijocvkgOb5nWfDJtDxZnAxpzGjB45DORi0FQPqLuECoQXCzVFsGgN6/s320/ch_intro.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Does God want Christian men to be stereotypes, stereotype
Christians?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Are we meant to question
things, the way things are, or are we meant to just to put up and shut up?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If God created us, then all the things we
are, questioning, asking, inquisitive, all these things must be from God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why do we pretend to be what we are not, why
do we hide behind religion and religious platitudes instead of finding out who
we really are?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Are we frightened of who
we really are, are we frightened of finding out the truth of who and what we
are?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And, just who are we?<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">We’re men, in all our glorious mess, our glorious
imperfection, our wonderings, our wonderings of just who we are and what our
lives mean.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Once you feel like a loser, for whatever reason, it’s hard to
shake off the feeling and it can consume you and seem to ruin your life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">We all deserve a second chance, we all deserve another shot at
life, no matter what we’ve done or what we haven’t done.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Anyone can be a good Christian, a good neighbour if they live
in a nice, prosperous middle class suburb, but their faith isn’t really tested.
What if you don’t live in a nice prosperous middle class suburb?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s easy to be nice if you’ve got a nice
comfortable life, surrounded by affluence and other nice people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if you don’t have a nice comfortable
life?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What happens if you’re unemployed,
or very poor and struggling, or live in a very run down area or just struggle
to make something of yourself?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Are you
not Christian material then?</span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxAOGDs2_oZ7NT86Q7-5pIB5HSZR0opO1OJ_iEo_8sxuj0WfRdnBRhTKCkHRDuxwzLMoyBj8j-8RzbN2WNREePMWbJcCj6SDmVqlWm9c5CyG6XeopcbcO-eg11aYsKn_109ZqkCe75WIaa/s1600/1093537.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxAOGDs2_oZ7NT86Q7-5pIB5HSZR0opO1OJ_iEo_8sxuj0WfRdnBRhTKCkHRDuxwzLMoyBj8j-8RzbN2WNREePMWbJcCj6SDmVqlWm9c5CyG6XeopcbcO-eg11aYsKn_109ZqkCe75WIaa/s1600/1093537.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">What sort of people did Jesus come for?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Those who have it all together or those who
find they haven’t got it all together?<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">What sort of men does God want?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perfect men with good jobs, always smiling
and endlessly successful with film star looks?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What about men like me, a mix of all kinds of contradictory emotions,
sometimes awkward, or loners, or misfits?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Is God above dealing with people like that, people like me, people like
you?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What does God want with us
anyway?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why doesn’t He leave us
alone?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Weren’t we fine doing our own
thing, didn’t we get on well without Him?<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Can bad men be reformed, can they become Christians?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What about those men who don’t really care
one way or the other about religion, who would rather be in a pub than in a
church?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Can God reach out to them?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why don’t men like going to church, why do so
many men feel it’s not for us even if we are Christians?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Does organised Christianity appeal to
men?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It doesn’t appeal to me
anyway.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve wondered about this for a
long time: just what sort of worship do we want as Christians? It seems to me
that church attendance is declining and yet no one is really asking why. Is it
because it seems so deadly dull and out of touch?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What city boy wants, really wants, to go to a
traditional church, sing hymns and hear a sermon that seems to have absolutely
no relevance to them?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Raising money for
church roofs, bric-a-brac sales and garden fetes are all very well, but they
are not what Christianity is really about.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Talk about crucifixion and the suffering and trials and
temptations of Jesus, and some men might relate to that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We relate to what we know, to suffering, to
hard lives, depression and sometimes the sheer injustice of life and the way
things have turned out for us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can
relate to Jesus’ sufferings because I have suffered.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why can’t we be honest about all of this, why
do we have to hide behind all kinds of falsehood, why can’t we debate and
discuss these, and many other, issues openly and honestly?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Are we supposed to keep our heads down, say
nothing, and pretend everything’s fine even when it’s obvious that it’s
not?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If we’re honest, we might just find
some truth by default.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And, don’t we all
want to get to the truth, after all?<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">So, we’re men and we have issues.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">What is all this religion about?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What is Christianity about?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What’s with all these denominations and which
denomination is the true one anyway?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What sort of church do men want?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>One that doesn’t mind our tattoos, our unshaven faces and looking like
thugs in jeans and t-shirts? Do we want a church that has a barbecue serving
steaks and ribs and burgers and a bar serving ice cold beer, with footy on the
telly? Perhaps. What we most want is something real, something that speaks to
our hearts and experience, something that makes sense to our troubled souls. What
we want is a faith that speaks to us, to our masculinity, our brokenness, our
uncertainties, our awkwardness, all the things in fact that make us men. Is
Jesus big and tough enough to deliver all this?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I think He is. Perhaps we need to ask Him.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Men are complex. We cry at some things, but not at others. We
are emotional, but usually in a negative aggressive sense.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are meant to be hard, but we ache to be
gentle and kind and caring.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Who do men identify with and want to be like?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Famous footballers, rock stars past and
present, charismatic and handsome film stars from all eras, and maybe great writers
and thinkers and artists. Some of us may even identify with Jesus.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">We’re all mostly ordinary men, so why do we identify with the
extraordinary, the great, the best? What’s lacking in us, for us to want to be something
out of the ordinary? We’re ordinary and we live in the mundane everyday world,
but sometimes we yearn for something bigger than us, to be something beyond us,
to be part of something bigger than we are. We want it all to mean something. That
everything isn’t by accident but that it all has a purpose, a bigger purpose
that will be made known to us.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Life is unfair. Some of us are born wealthy and affluent, and
some of us simply are not. Getting on is an issue for most men. But how are we
to approach this as Christians?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Surely
we should just leave it to God, pray and hope for the best?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Are we even to have ambitions to better lives
as Christian men?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Surely Christians are
meant to live in poverty and just accept the circumstances they find themselves
in? Well, in the past poor people often had accept their lot in life, whilst
rich people, those wealthy or connected, could really do what they liked. We
live in more enlightened times now, and part of life for most people is getting
on, progressing, setting goals and going about trying to achieve them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But for the Christian man, where does God fit
into all of this? Is trying to be successful setting ourselves against God and
His plan for our lives? Doesn’t everyone want to get on? What about the
Christian man? I believe in every area of our lives, especially whatever it is
that we are unsure about, we should simply pray to God for help and for an answer.
Everything we do in a sense should be approved by God, but there’s no reason at
all why anyone can’t aspire to a better life, to make money, to fulfil a dream,
start a business, be a sportsman, musician, writer, shopkeeper, further a
career or simply like many of us just get a job. There seems to be an unwritten
rule, especially in England, that Christians must stay poor to be real
Christians.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m not quite sure why. It
never seems to apply to those already wealthy or Middle and Upper class Christians
though. There is a double-standard here which we all need to move on from. Christianity
can be about empowering people, to do things they might never have dreamed of. God’s
calling on your life might very well be to serve Him in some kind of reduced
circumstances, helping others in poverty-stricken areas, but it might also be
that God wants you to enjoy abundance and be successful, providing of course
you remain true to Him and your Christian calling. It can be done.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Where do men stand with women?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Where do Christian men stand with the whole
dating game?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you make a move on some
women, even if they like you, they’ll draw back from you and act like they
don’t like you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With another kind of
women, if they like you they flash their eyes at you and expect you to rush
over and break the ice. If you don’t right at that moment, they won’t usually
give you a second chance. So, what’s a man to do?<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">All the things we want to be good at, successful with women,
successful in general, happy, healthy, with a general sunny out outlook, yet we
often fail to live up to any of this and we feel failures. Yes, we’re men and
we have issues. You may ask ‘are we Christian men real people?’ Yes, we’re real
people, if you hit us we bleed like anyone else. Why do we cling to so
stubbornly to this faith, this belief, when often it seems to bring us no good?<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">For Christian men, the past represents our old life, and the
present and future represents our new Christian life.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Money! That old chestnut money. Is there more to life than
money and the making of money?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whatever
we think about it, money is something that is a big part of men’s lives, either
we have it or we don’t have it, either we’re making it or we’re not making it
and, whether we have it or not, it is the thing we most want in life, the thing
we must keep making. If we don’t have it we want it, and if we have it we want
even more of it. So, is there more to life than money? Well, there is peace,
joy, happiness, a sense of well-being and contentment, and also the idea that
we are not continually looking around the corner waiting for something better
to turn up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But, let’s be honest, we can
attain all these things anytime...can’t we? And what we all really want is
money...isn’t it? Money is what makes the world go round, and whether we like
it or not, we live in a world dominated by money, one way or the other.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Money touches all our lives. In what way should Christian men
treat money?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This could be an easy
question, or not an easy question, depending on your point of view.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The first answer is we should fulfil our need
before we satisfy our greed and we should be grateful for the good things in
life we already have, like a roof over our heads, food in the fridge, access to
the things in life that keep us clean and healthy and so on, and not worry so
much about whether we are wealthy. Of course, to some men, this answer might
seem a cop-out, a trite answer that just doesn’t work. I mean, don’t we all
want to get on, make money, be successful, improve our lives and have a good
quality of life and be able to buy the things we want? Most of us do, if we’re
honest but where do we draw the line?</span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_GoBack"></a><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">‘<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I devoted myself to
study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under heaven. What a heavy
burden God has laid on men!</i>’ (Ecclesiastes 1:13)</span></span></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
Controversial Christianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01592854534440021411noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5399939854040187992.post-89498089270146018442016-07-05T09:57:00.002-07:002016-07-05T10:26:36.417-07:00Trapped In Me<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: large;">Trapped in me,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: large;">Words are not enough</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: large;">to explain the bittersweet emptiness I feel.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: large;">I have no friends near, no one understands… may never
understand</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: large;">what it’s like to be trapped in me.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: large;">My greatest gift, and my worst curse is simply to be me, and
no one else,</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: large;">and no one else can understand what it feels like to be me.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: large;">I journey strange voyages alone… I can’t get anyone to come
along.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: large;">But then, why would they?</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: large;">I’m a man, or so I think.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: large;">That’s what I am supposed to be.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: large;">Loss, pain, success, thrills, glory, tears, laughs...</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: large;">To everything turn, and turn again.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: large;">I’m not a poet,</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: large;">and nor would I pretend to be.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: large;">I’m just trapped...</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: large;">in me.</span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_GoBack"></a></div>
Controversial Christianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01592854534440021411noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5399939854040187992.post-56983762648972694052016-06-20T09:04:00.003-07:002018-09-17T20:52:34.738-07:00Thinning On Top?!<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">No, Thinning on Top is not a small
quaint village in Worcestershire somewhere (pronounced Wus-te-sha, not wussussestershishishishishi
etc) full of English stereotypes out of a Hollywood movie, I’m talking hair
here, and you know, you’ve all been running from that for a long time, haven’t
you? Time to face the truth...<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Oh, woe is me! Hair today, gone
tomorrow!? As the hair goes, the beard grows! Grass doesn’t grow on a busy
street!? His head is growing through his hair! Taking longer and longer to wash
your face??! Well, at least you’ll save a fortune on combs!! Hey, Chromedome!!
Oi, Slaphead?!! And on and on it goes, a veritable litany of cruelty, jibes,
anxiety and hilarity aimed at the man who is ‘follicly’ challenged. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I’m going a bit thin on top, you
see. At one time, it was a traumatic thing for blokes to go bald, or starting
to go bald. In fact, it still is really, but the trend now is to make it trendy
“are you going<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>bald, mate? Oh no, I’m
just shaving my head. It’s really cool, isn’t it?” and so on. Get a tight t
shirt and tight jeans, grow a trendy goatee beard, or the latest guy accessory
a full beard (if you can, that is) and the bald head is the crown on the head of
your new image change. Baldness can actually be trendy...<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I suppose of course, that losing
your hair also brings your youth to an end in some cases, too. But, not always.
What seems to happen to guys where I come from is they actually start to take
more care in their appearance, lose a bit of weight, perhaps work out a bit and
start thinking about their wardrobe and what clothes they are actually wearing.
In some cases, some blokes might even start buying AND using moisturiser!!! Not
me, oh no... But, suddenly the hair loss isn’t the end, not a bit of it, it can
be the beginning of a whole new you. Without hair though, obviously.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Just look at these guys for a
moment, if you will, and savour their slapheadedness in all their glory...<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span></o:p></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWeA-NTtm603-JIWhyphenhyphenO1ezZ3hBF0Rb44ADVVkD33W_fDX24C7Rlm90OeHv4IZNbXU15hMFOoeWds7m-xliZejZLhIX74h87ouK03x6mHMK-iG_9nV-KGM7MHkyQmeXmg9u2inaqhaAGEj0/s1600/Slaphead+Collage.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWeA-NTtm603-JIWhyphenhyphenO1ezZ3hBF0Rb44ADVVkD33W_fDX24C7Rlm90OeHv4IZNbXU15hMFOoeWds7m-xliZejZLhIX74h87ouK03x6mHMK-iG_9nV-KGM7MHkyQmeXmg9u2inaqhaAGEj0/s320/Slaphead+Collage.png" width="320" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">
</span></span>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">So, it’s not so bad to be a baldy,
is it. Could be the start of a whole new you... and let’s face it, you won’t go
through the trauma of going bald again, will you? And I’ll leave you with this
pearl of wisdom, that may leave you at peace:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perhaps going bald is just God’s way of saying
you are losing your hair....? <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">And Here, is the Slaphead’s
Slaphead....</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span></span> </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU4lHbxpBAEcTvRG7CAPgPzrKmmvQgcZOJ_nM3bHY2djSjjR0LAgux5Sr6yykd_J4Cg61PZaxRJYfVn41UrEH-ixOhcfHdC4J7fpZOjEGDNEZhGO_jHnTmFsLSBvQ5G1-oe1xTX6VgEeTW/s1600/jason-statham+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU4lHbxpBAEcTvRG7CAPgPzrKmmvQgcZOJ_nM3bHY2djSjjR0LAgux5Sr6yykd_J4Cg61PZaxRJYfVn41UrEH-ixOhcfHdC4J7fpZOjEGDNEZhGO_jHnTmFsLSBvQ5G1-oe1xTX6VgEeTW/s320/jason-statham+%25282%2529.jpg" width="243" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><o:p></o:p></span></span> </div>
Controversial Christianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01592854534440021411noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5399939854040187992.post-4429167459185337552016-06-01T09:22:00.000-07:002016-06-01T09:22:01.037-07:00John Sentamu’s Coming!!!!!!!!
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s coming, he’s coming today<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Is he staying for a year, or a year and a day?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s coming, he’s on his way<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Three cheers for the fella, hip hip hooray!!!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFBbOQnt8wiKVJf-7OWHEkp7iUVWK7SExhm_C-OA4jrWtFKnHs0lc5f48CFqC3dno_3eqAZuv8aNxjQ9R6k4YIthdElwvqlmLp8jvpcJWg_g735ZOVYWWbWW8XFyN4Povv57680SMdsehF/s1600/aby_150x213.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFBbOQnt8wiKVJf-7OWHEkp7iUVWK7SExhm_C-OA4jrWtFKnHs0lc5f48CFqC3dno_3eqAZuv8aNxjQ9R6k4YIthdElwvqlmLp8jvpcJWg_g735ZOVYWWbWW8XFyN4Povv57680SMdsehF/s1600/aby_150x213.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s buying, he’s getting them in<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Cider for her, and I’ll have a gin<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s buying, so don’t be late<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">He drinks like a fish, and he eats for eight.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s drumming, he’s forming a band<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Rap indie rock metal, he’ll never be panned<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s strumming, a one man band<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">It’s always live music, he’ll never be canned.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s running, get out of his way<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Running for dolphins, or so they<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s gunning, he’s gunning for souls<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">He’s driving a mini, but never a Rolls.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s thinking, of what to do now<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Skiing for hedgehogs, hopping in Macau<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s smiling, a friendly old chap<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">The nation is grateful, we all doff our cap.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s laughing, but never at you<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">His anger is righteous, his barbs are all true<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s angry, but never for long<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Soon he’ll be smiling, then what can go wrong?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s singing, he isn’t half bad<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Hes rarely unhappy, and usually not sad<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s ringing, he wants a nice chat<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Nothing important, just this and that.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s going on holiday<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">A caravan park, thats where he’ll stay<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s going, a nice well earned rest<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Some fishing, some climbing, whatever is best.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s crying, for all the poor<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">He jeers at poverty, shows injustice the door<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s frowning, at all of the pain<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">But his soothing smile is like desert rain.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s dancing, dancing with joy<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">For every girl and for every boy<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s rapping, in the cathedral at York<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">He walks the walk, and he talks the talk.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s jumping, and hopping with glee<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">He’s doing it all for you and for me<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s flying, flying at height<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">He frowns at wrong, and smiles at right.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s walking, and he’s walking tall<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">He does it for one, and he does it for all<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s jogging for sweet charity<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">For<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>hope, and peace
and equality.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s sombre, he’s thinking through things<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">He takes in his stride whatever life brings<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s smiling, the sun has come out<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">He never worries, and there’s never a doubt.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s here, and sometimes he’s there<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">You’ll get to see him, just don’t you despair<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">John Sentamu’s grinning, with nary a frown<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Lucida Handwriting"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Hey hey, its big Johnny, he might be coming to your
town...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
Controversial Christianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01592854534440021411noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5399939854040187992.post-90338625847359893642016-05-16T09:00:00.001-07:002016-05-16T09:04:52.867-07:00Man Talk<div align="justify">
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span><div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">What does it mean to be a man?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What does it mean to be a Christian man?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How does an ordinary bloke, a regular guy,
turn the other cheek on the street or anywhere for that matter, when society
and all our instincts call for retaliation?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Do we have to subsume our masculinity to live as a Christian man, should
we be consciously genteel and constantly rather nice to everyone we meet, being
overly polite even to our old mates?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What on earth will our drinking buddies think of us when instead of laughing
at obscene jokes, we just earnestly want to talk about our faith, between gulps
of beer that is?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In short, do we have to
deny our masculinity, whatever that may mean, to be a Christian man?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do we have to pretend to be something we are
not?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What about all us macho big city
guys, baseball cap wearing street-smart blokes-are we really Christian
material?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What about guys covered in
tattoos and earrings and shaved heads and 3 day stubble?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did Jesus really come for people like that;
for people like us?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Didn’t God, after
all, create all of us, not just holier-than-thou, well-to-do religious types
who go to church and sing hymns on Sunday?!<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_GoBack"></a><span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: large;">
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Can Christian men listen to rock music; can we like Jimi
Hendrix, The Who or The Doors anyway?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Just why is some music considered sacred and something else
profane?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Can we only interact with other
Christians?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Can we only listen to
Christian music and watch Christian movies?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Do we have to eat Christian sandwiches and shop in Christian
supermarkets?!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just what does being a
Christian man really mean anyway?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">What does the world want of Christian men?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What does Jesus want of Christian men?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What do I want from being a Christian
man?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think, above all, I want a little
honesty in my life, a little reality to shine through the fog of my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We allow women to be feminine, to be gentle,
to reassure and speak soothingly; do we allow men to be masculine?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I don’t just mean dominant alpha males,
you know, the super-successful, the super-rich, the influential politicians who
make decisions and wield power, I mean the guy on the street, the bloke who
might be unemployed, the guy propping up the bar, the awkward, the loner, the
misfit?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The ordinary bloke who has to
struggle to get on; what does He mean to Jesus?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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</span><div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: large;">
</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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</span><div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: large;">
</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Jesus takes us as He finds us, in all our glorious
individuality, our macho masculinity, our ‘woundedness’, our brokenness, our
feelings of being lost.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What Christian
men need to know, understand and come to terms with is that Jesus knows who we
are; if He’s comfortable with our masculinity then we should be too.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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</span><div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: large;">
</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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</span><div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: large;">
</span></div>
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</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">What happens if a bloke isn’t really interested in singing
hymns and Sunday worship, what happens if we struggle with the idea of being
over-emotional in a church setting or we’ve never even been to a church before;
is God not for us then?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is worship
reaching out, is traditional Christianity really reaching out to masculine
men?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Does Jesus want Christian men to be
religious stereotypes, clean shaven and wearing dark blue suits?!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: large;">
</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: large;">
</span></div>
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</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Men, like you and me, need to know who the real Jesus is,
because only through Him can we really understand who we are and only in Him
can we begin to make sense of it all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Jesus is big and tough enough to take on our masculinity and our
awkwardness, our questioning and our misgivings, our very struggles with our
often flawed masculinity.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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</span><div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: large;">
</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: large;">
</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Does Jesus know that even the hardest macho man hides behind
an image, an image of toughness, to hide a tender side, a side that is hidden
to the world?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is it ok to feel doubt
within, doubt that we are not sure of who we are as men?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are brought up to be hard, cold and not to
cry, and then when we are just that, we are condemned for being men!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And then if we are gentle and in tune with
our emotions, we are called wimps!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When
we throw off these mental chains, of all kinds, maybe, just maybe we can find
out who we are as men.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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</span><div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: large;">
</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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</span><div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: large;">
</span></div>
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</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Being reconciled to God means we can be reconciled to other
people and as importantly we can be reconciled to ourselves; we can really find
out who we are as Christian men.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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</span><div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: large;">
</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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</span><div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: large;">
</span></div>
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</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">God is big enough to take us as we are and He knows all about
us anyway, so what’s stopping you moving towards Him?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is the Christian life for real men or just
for those who hide behind a mask; failures, losers, awkward loners, those who
can’t get by in life without an emotional crutch?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Real men are often broken, broken into little
bits, and we spend our lives pretending we aren’t broken and everything is
fine, when it isn’t and we carry the broken bits around with us, trying in vain
to put them all back together and make sense of it all; at all costs we have to
be macho, or keep smiling, never letting the truth seep in, the truth of our
deep and bitter brokenness; not even to God can we be honest; not even to
ourselves can we be honest.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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</span><div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: large;">
</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
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<span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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</span><div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: large;">
</span></div>
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</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">So, just what is it to be a Christian man?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Can we bring all our troubles and hopes and
fears to Jesus, or what?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Can we still be
real men <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">and</i> real Christians?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You might be surprised at the answer; if
Jesus was a real man, so can we be real men!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span> </div>
</span>Controversial Christianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01592854534440021411noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5399939854040187992.post-42865867528762072022016-03-12T09:08:00.000-08:002016-06-28T09:07:16.221-07:00Donald Trump - Making America Grate Again.<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We tend to be a little perplexed
over the Big Ol’ Duck Pond, at the goings on at the race for the presidency. To
give any one person such power in the world’s biggest economy and no1
superpower seems a little worrying. Americans seem to have two choices: the
nice candidate who pretends to care about ordinary people, and the bonkers one
who seems to hear the beat of his own drum.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m saying, that Trump definitely
is in the latter camp here. Quite frankly I don’t think he is nuts, not by a
long chalk. Not even deranged. But whether he is saying what many Americans
think is open to question. Obviously some agree with his views. Building a wall
along the Mexican/Texas border, and making the Mexicans pay for it seemed popular
in some quarters, but probably not Mexico. I wish you the best of luck with
that, Donald. Perhaps you could pay for that wall instead, seeing as you’re
richer than most oil sheikhs?? It’s not even that I don’t think he has no right
to air such opinions, but they are the sort of things that people who frequent
bars tend to air to nobody in particular when they’ve had a few ‘sherbets’, not
the sort of thing hopeful presidential incumbents should be saying. How high
will the wall be? 10 feet? Hmmm, I suspect the more enterprising Mexicans will
be able to work out a solution to that. 12 foot ladders, perhaps? Oh, and the
fact that by keeping immigration illegal, businesses stateside have a plentiful
supply of cheap labour that will do almost anything, live in almost any slum
and accept awful pay just to get a foot in the door. So everybody wins!!! Those
for and against immigration. Democracy in action.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzobaoZrjfbioiIVPyFFHlg-WpCYre7FRE_KypLdwWSM_KPXUePoz9QrfpevwvkfvHPGSWh_Haeftjj23RD_ihS3cXSCn2SqTKFSO8rNhksnn756U2FFEUExI6FIgTWmshrsTfKUFQP6cf/s1600/FontCandy+%252815%2529.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="185" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzobaoZrjfbioiIVPyFFHlg-WpCYre7FRE_KypLdwWSM_KPXUePoz9QrfpevwvkfvHPGSWh_Haeftjj23RD_ihS3cXSCn2SqTKFSO8rNhksnn756U2FFEUExI6FIgTWmshrsTfKUFQP6cf/s320/FontCandy+%252815%2529.png" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In Britain at the moment, our
democracy has descended again into a sort of privately educated posh rich boy
aristocracy, with the underlining unspoken assumption that such folk have the
perfect right to run things, being descended from some dead aristocrat that
nobody cares about or remembers, and that such things matter. In America, they
have merrily done away with such things, and so any ordinary regular
billionaire on the street, or someone backed by billions of dollars, can
democratically run for the presidency. Thank goodness our respective political
systems are not corrupt or lop sided in any way, or we’d all really be in
trouble. People might get the crazy idea that democracy is democracy in name
only. How silly it would be to think such a thing.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah. Now,
if this post ever goes viral, or gets more than the usual 20 or so hits such posts
as this get, I will appeal to all Americans to think kindly on me.
Because....<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(deep breath) ... If this
post angers Trump fans and they vote for him in spite of me and all I stand for,
you can thank me in no small part for his election. However, if this post helps
people vote for anyone else other than Mr’s Trump’s fave son, then all those
who didn’t want him as president can thank me. So, whether Big Donnie wins or
not, it’s a win win for me. And that’s the kind of democracy I like.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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Controversial Christianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01592854534440021411noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5399939854040187992.post-61606776059358052622016-01-16T10:55:00.002-08:002016-01-16T10:55:41.615-08:00<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">This is a blog exclusively for men, talking about men, and being men!!!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">But women can look in from time to time, too!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Also, if anyone wishes to contribute something, I would like to hear from you. Men stuff only please, even if from a female perspective.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;">It is also going to be more light hearted and though I am a practising Christian, it is going to be on anything and everything. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;">Well, cheerio for now...</span>Controversial Christianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01592854534440021411noreply@blogger.com0