Guilty by Reason of Stupidity

There's a major Catch-22 when it comes to the world's perception of Christianity. I've seen it so much lately and it's got me thinking. The catch goes something like this: if a Christian lives life guided by the Holy Spirit, he or she will act in such a way that causes non-Christians to label him or her a legalist. However, if that Christian (or so-called-Christian as the case may be) lives life attempting to do good deeds to convince God of his or her righteousness, such person truly is a legalist and also likely a huge hypocrite. A person who lives life trying to convince God of a righteousness that simply is not there is also likely to judge others who are also failing miserably at convincing God of their righteousness. So, the Catch 22 is either be a legalist or be labeled a legalist.

So, what do we do?  The answer hinges on who we, as Christians, are ultimately subject to and controlled by:  God and his grace, or people and their perceptions (and inherent lack of grace).  For the true Christian, the answer should be obvious.  Those of us who understand the doctrine of total depravity know and understand that there is no amount of "goodness" we can accomplish to convince God of our righteousness.  We also understand how ridiculous it is to judge the actions of others as either righteous or unrighteous and try to brow beat or guilt-trip others into being more righteous.

Lately I've been reading through the gospel accounts and my attention has been drawn to the ridiculous level of legalism in the Pharisees and scribes juxtaposed with the utter lack of legalism in Christ.  Jesus turned water into alcohol (taboo in certain Baptist circles to say the least), healed on the Sabbath, and hung out with the worst of sinners.  I particularly liked his response to the Pharisees when they questioned his healing of the man with the withered hand on the Sabbath (Mark 3:1-6).  Before the Pharisees could even get the question out, Jesus asked, "Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save a life or to kill?"  With that one question Jesus declared the Pharisees to be guilty by reason of stupidity.

Are you guilty of stupidity? I have been on occasion.  Is it possible we're making Christian living way more difficult and complex than it should be?  Jesus lived righteously AND exercised common sense.  He wasn't bound up in the letter of the law, which if exercised in some situations would have completely gutted the spirit of the law.  As Christians we need to trust the guidance of the Holy Spirit.  Of course, this will result in a big fat "legalist" label being slapped on us, but that's certainly better than the alternative of actually being a legalist. I challenge you to examine yourself and your motives and make your own determination about who or what you really are.  Just a thought.

Warning: This is a Rant

If you read the title to this post, consider yourself warned. There is so much crap going on right now that I really just need to vent some things. So please excuse the stream-of-consciousness style of this post.

I check out the Drudge Report on nearly a daily basis because I like to keep up with what's going on in the world. Almost every time I do I get so mad I just want to throw something. If you're a regular reader of Drudge, you know exactly why. Our current government is made up of the most incompetent, selfish, morally defunct, pieces of excrement on God's green earth. No, I'm not just talking about Democrats, although they are in power (and have been since 2006) and therefore are mostly to blame for the mess we're in. I am so sick of agenda-based decision-making. Case in point--the Gulf oil spill. One company screws up and Obama stops all off-shore drilling for 6 months to try to "figure out what went wrong." BP has a strong history of killing people and causing petroleum crises in this country. Why is anyone surprised that this happened? The 6 month moratorium will have the effect of raising energy prices and putting 10s of thousands of people out of work. All because the administration doesn't like fossil fuels!

Almost every day I read an article where a prominent Democrat is still blaming President Bush for the economic collapse, the Gulf oil spill, or the plight of the black man. I'm sick of it. Why can't anyone take responsibility for anything anymore!?! President Obama is 18 months into his administration. The Democrats have controlled Congress for almost 4 years. How in the world is all this stuff Bush's fault? Even if it is, Bush no longer has any power to do anything. Current elected officials do, but they choose to do nothing while blaming others who can't do anything about anyting.

Nancy Pelosi thinks handing out welfare checks is the fastest way to create jobs. Obama waited 70 days to accept help from foreign vessels to help clean up the oil spill. Obama is suing the State of Arizona for passing a law that allows state law enforcement to enforce federal immigration laws that the federal government refuses to enforce. Obama campaigned on a platform that demonized small businesses for having the audacity to want to make a profit. This is the President who made the comment of some CEOs that "at some point, you've made enough money" less than a year after he himself made over $5 million off the sale of his book! His entire political party continues to demonize the financially successful in this country. Apparently individuals should take on enormous financial risk and work really hard to build businesses for the sole purpose of handing out jobs to people. I don't know what fantasy land they live in, but it's certainly not reality. Rather than offering tax incentives and freeing up credit for small businesses--tactics that have a long history of creating jobs and strengthening the economy--this administration is hell-bent on finding ways to punish entrepreneurs. Our government is more concerned with giving refuge to and granting amnesty to 12 million illegal immigrants because if those folks are given the right to vote, they'll vote for Democrats. Never mind the fact that illegal immigrants are a huge drain on our social system and civil services. Never mind the fact that if you truly have a medical emergency you'll have to wait hours in the ER while illegal immigrants use ER docs as primary care physicians on the dime of the taxpayer, knowing full well that the ER can't turn them away on the basis that they can't pay. Nevermind the fact that illegal immigrants can claim injuries and sue American businesses for damages even though they are here illegally--and lawyers cannot ask them if they are here legally!

As a struggling small business owner, I'm sick and tired of taking responsibility for myself and being punished and demonized for it. I really feel like the more you try to take responsibility for yourself, the more this government tries to place the burden on you to take responsibility for everyone else too lazy to do so. When are people going to wake up and see what's happening. Quit blaming Bush, Fox News and entrepreneurs and get off your lazy butt and do something! If you don't like your life, no one is responsible for making it better except you!

Ok, that's all for now. Sorry to yell so much but I actually do feel a little better.

Quit Blaming Bush

For the last year and a half plus, we have continuously heard that President Bush is to blame for this and that. You know, I kind of expected that during Obama's campaign, even though I personally believe the blame placed on Bush for the economic disaster was completely unfounded. But, politicians don't really do a whole lot of fact checking before talking, especially the ones backed by the main stream media.

But now, Obama is almost 18 months into his presidency and he's still blaming Bush for his own failures. Bush wasn't the one that created a debt that will take a couple of lifetimes to pay down. Bush wasn't the one who went on a world apology tour that has caused every terrorist organization and sponsoring country in the world to lick its lips at the thought of striking a blow to the US. Contrary to popular belief, Bush didn't cause the Gulf oil spill. In case you're wondering who did, it was BP. It's their well, their rig, their operation. Bush had nothing to do with it. Bush isn't responsible for the double digit unemployment we see now. As a matter of fact, Obama told us his massive injections of cash into the economy would cause unemployment to stop at 8%. What a load of crap that was! And finally, Bush isn't responsible for Obama's approval rating dropping below 46%.

Yesterday, I got really tired of reading news reports about Bush being blamed for everything, including the Gulf oil spill. So I formed a Facebook group called Quit Blaming George W. Bush for Everything. Honestly, I did it as kind of a joke just to let off some steam, but it seems to have sprouted wings. More than 2/3 of the people who have joined the group are folks I've never had the pleasure of meeting, so apparently it's not just me and my friends that think this way.

So, if you are tired of people blaming W for everything, join our Facebook group and contribute some thoughts. Or, if you're a liberal who thinks Bush is to blame for everything evil and bad thing in the world and want to express your opinion, join the group and let us rip you to shreds. Your call.

Writer's Block and Spiritual Growth

Ok, so I don't know what's happening to me lately. I just can't find anything that's worth writing about and that's not like me. Most of you know I started a new blog that is specific to my love for technology (Tech Consumption) but I can't seem to find anything to write about there either. Despite the total lack of material, I still feel like there's something I need to write. So, when all else fails, write about something God has been working you over about, right?

Amanda and I both have the spiritual gift of giving. We love to give and there have been so many times in our marriage where God has moved on both of us to give to a particular person or cause and has given us the exact same dollar figure to give. That is so cool! We look for opportunities to give because we find so much joy in it.

Lately we've felt led to give, but this time God hasn't told us where or how much. This might be because I've been neglecting daily time with my Lord and have therefore closed down the communication channels. I honestly don't know what the deal is but I'm excited about the prospect of God once again using us to further his kingdom.

Around the beginning of this year I went through a season of feeling like God was stripping away everything I was holding on to too tightly. I lost my job and my family immediately took about a 75% pay cut. It was almost as if God was telling me he doesn't need my earning power or accomplishments in order to use me effectively. In my heart I know that, but I don't think I was acting that way.

So, without the ability to simply write someone a check, I've had to be purposeful about looking for opportunities to give to people without giving them money. This has opened my eyes to a whole new level of need, which as an introvert, I have always ignored. Giving can consist of mowing someone's lawn so they can rest and spend time with their family. Or help someone plant a garden or do some landscaping, or just have lunch with someone and be available to listen. It doesn't have to be anything extravagant or extremely creative. Just be available and willing to lend a hand.

I know there isn't much structure to this post. After all, I am in the middle of a writer's block. But it feels good to get some things down in writing. My hope is that you'll read this and feel the need to be purposeful about serving others. Now, get out there and serve someone!

Pulling Weeds

Yesterday while Zachary was sleeping I decided to go out in the back yard and pull some of the weeds that had sprung up over the winter. Amanda and I have been working to make our back yard a retreat of sorts and I take a lot of pride in how my grass looks. I wanted to get rid of the crab grass and clover that had taken over various segments of the yard so that all you see when you come over is nice, beautiful St. Augustine grass.

I love yard work because it's a time for me to plug in my iPod and listen to podcasts. Lately I've been listening to Matt Chandler sermon series, so I began listening to a three-part series called Games People Play. The theme of the series is a look at religious people who followed Jesus in an effort to look religious and pious, but who had no intent whatsoever to commit their lives to him. They talk a good talk, but refuse to submit their lives to the Lord if that submission seems uncomfortable to them.

I don't often pull metaphors from ordinary tasks, but as I was pulling weeds out of my yard, it dawned on me that I often talk a good talk but then do things to mask the sin in my life so that I can give an appearance of righteousness. Looking a little deeper into the weed-pulling metaphor, sometimes it's easier just to break the weed off at the surface of the ground rather than pull the root up. It takes much more time and effort to find the root and make sure you get all of it. Sometimes when I get tired, I'll just break the weed off to give the appearance that there are no weeds, but if the root is left in place, the weed will be back very shortly.

I've been examining my life to find the areas where I'm masking sin rather than pulling the root up. How about you? Have you taken the time to examine your life in the same manner? I encourage to find the root of your sin and remove that root. Don't just break the weed off and pretend it's gone.

New Venture

As some of you may know, December of 2009 was a crazy time for me and Amanda. The same day Zachary turned 2 weeks old, I found out I lost my job. This was just a couple of weeks before Christmas! Many people have asked me how the job hunt is going. Just to set the record straight, there is no "job-hunting" going on in the Camp household.

For those of you who know us well, you know that Amanda and I have wanted to work together for quite some time. This little turn of events puts us in a great position to do just that. Amanda has operated restyle by herself for 2 1/2 years and done a fantastic job. The vast majority of small businesses fail, but ours has thrived under her direction. Now, I finally have the time to take some of the load off her shoulders and let her concentrate on the things she loves to do--interacting with customers and consignors and developing new relationships to grow our business. I'll be taking over the nerdy tasks of finances, legal and marketing. It's a perfect fit for us!

While working on "store stuff" does keep me pretty busy, it doesn't take up all my time. I actually now have more time to do what I have always loved doing--writing. I have done some major brainstorming to come up with ideas on an outlet for my love of writing and I have settled on a new blog that I want you guys to know about. After surveying various topics, I have decided to write about the use of technology in small business. I considered writing about politics, but I just end up getting mad. Technology makes me happy, so I'm going to stick with that.

So, today I am announcing the launch of Tech Consumption as my new venture. In this blog I will write about how small business owners can use various forms of technology to grow their businesses while simultaneously satisfying their technology cravings. If this topic interests you, I would encourage you to follow along. If you know some small business owners that might be able to profit from this content, please pass this along to them.

In the meantime, I'll continue to keep this blog up so you can keep up with the Camps. More to come shortly!

The Reliever

It was the top of the 7th inning. The home team was down by two runs and the bases were loaded. It had been an up and down year for the home team. They had started the season off like gang busters, putting winning streaks together and making things look easy. Then all of a sudden, with about a quarter of the season left, things began to tank. Maybe all the arrogance began to catch up. Maybe the opposition had finally figured out the secret to knocking the home team down a notch. Whatever it was, winning was not quite as easy as it had once been. Blow out losses were becoming all too familiar and the fans were smelling blood in the water.

If the season ended today, the home team would not make the playoffs, but they were not yet mathematically out of it. All they had to do was win out--5 more games. They had put together many 5 game winning streaks earlier in the season, so the task didn't seem too far-fetched. But winning 5 in a row started with today's game and they were down by two in the top of the seventh inning.

While the team was struggling, the fans began clamoring for the brass to call up their star reliever from the minors. This reliever had been all-everything in college and had moved his way up through the minors with blazing speed. He was charismatic, confident and the fans adored him. He had a way of putting everyone at ease when he took the mound, no matter what the situation was. Although the reliever had no major league experience, the fans had made their desires known--call him up to save the season!

So, shortly before today's game, the front office called up the reliever. The fans turned out in record numbers in hopes they would get a chance to see the reliever work his magic. In the local press the reliever had jockeyed for this opportunity, promising the fans he could work his way out of any mess, including the downward spiral the home team was currently in. All the home team needed was new blood and a new style. All he needed was a chance.

The reliever was finally getting his chance. With two outs and the bases loaded in the top of the 7th inning, the manager walked out to the mound and signaled for the lefty. The fans exploded in jubilee, high on the promises made by the reliever that he would be able to deliver the home team from any mess and resurrect them into a playoff contender. All he needed to do was get a strikeout, fly ball or grounder to end this inning and give the boys with the bats a chance to put some runs on the board. All he had to do was get one out to keep the game close.

The manager handed him the ball and told the reliever, "I'm depending on you to get us out of this mess. But even more so, all those fans in the stands are depending on you to deliver on your promises. You're getting your chance--now do something about it!"

The reliever took the ball, toed the rubber and to the tune of 40,000 fans cheering him on, delivered his first pitch. The batter put wood on the ball and lined a single up the middle plating a run. The crowd noise died down a little, but realizing the home team was only down by 3 runs and a grounder could still easily end the inning, they forgave the reliever and began cheering for him again. He toed the rubber, got the sign from the catcher and delivered his next pitch. As if he were able to read the reliever's mind, the batter stepped into the pitch and launched a double off the right field wall, plating 2 more runs.

The crowd grew eerily silent and then began grumbling a little. This was the guy who had promised he would deliver the team from it's downward spiral. He had convinced the multitudes that he was the answer to all the problems. Then he comes into the game and immediately turns a 2 run deficit into a 5 run deficit. This is not how this was supposed to go down. This is not the guy the fans wanted called up from the minors. The reliever thought he was ready for the big leagues, but apparently he wasn't.

Not to be fazed by the disappointment he had delivered so far, the reliever decided he would show what he was made of and blow a fastball right by this next batter. That would convince the fans they had vouched for the right guy. He toed the rubber with 2 outs, a man on third and a 5 run deficit. He repeatedly shook off signs from the catcher until the catcher gave up and gave him the sign to throw whatever pitch he wanted to throw. The windup--the pitch--the crack of wood hitting leather reverberated throughout the entire stadium. The white ball became a speck against the blue sky and sailed over the left field fence.

As the batter trotted around the bases, the crowd erupted, but this time in a chorus of boos. The reliever for whom they had incessantly campaigned to be brought up not only failed to live up to the hype, but had instantly turned into a monumental failure. Rather than keeping the game close so the rest of his teammates could do their jobs, he had put the home team in such a huge deficit that there was no way they could climb out of it in time to win this game. The 2 run deficit that was bad, but not quite daunting, had turned into an insurmountable mountain--a 7 run blowout.

As the boos continued, the fans began streaming out of the building, unable to tolerate this any longer. The manager plodded out to the mound and called for the righty. As he took the ball from the reliever, he gave the reliever an exasperated look and told him to hit the showers.

At the post game press conference, a reporter asked the reliever, "What happened out there? For months you have been telling every reporter who would listen to you that you were the answer to the home team's woes. You could salvage this season and put the home team back on the winning track. Instead you have destroyed any hope of this team reaching the playoffs. What do you have to say to all the fans who campaigned for your call up?"

The reliever looked into the cameras with fire in his eyes and said, "It's not my fault! I inherited this mess and I know I said I could pull us out of this tailspin, but the tailspin was greater than anyone could have imagined. None of this is my fault. I know the team called me up for precisely this situation, but if the starting pitcher had not loaded the bases, I could have gotten us out of the jam. It's all his fault, not mine! Things are always going to get worse before they get better and you can't blame me for that, even though I told you I would be able to turn things around immediately."

The fans at home, upon watching this press conference, banded together and began calling for the reliever to be cut from the organization. How dare he promise to do something, fail, and then blame it on his predecessor! Isn't a reliever's sole job to come in when the team is in a bind and get them out of the jam? Even more so when he spent months telling the fans he was capable of just such a feat, causing them to throw all their support behind him resulting in his meteoric rise to the big leagues. Otherwise, what's the point of calling in a reliever in the first place? If the fans had only known this popular reliever would point the finger and blame his failures on everyone else around him, they never would have begged and pleaded for his promotion. Now their only course of action is to band together once again and plead with the establishment to send this reliever packing. If he can't do the job he promised he would be able to do, there's no sense in paying him to do it.

Google Buzz

Most of you know I'm a bit of a techno-geek, so imagine my amazement when I woke up this morning to crazy news about Google Buzz coming out of nowhere. Literally I had no idea what this was, so I started reading all the articles. Apparently Google is still on track to dominate the world through the internet. Google Buzz is like Twitter, only integrated with your Gmail account as well as other Google products like Picasa Web, YouTube, Flickr, Blogger, etc. You can also integrate with your Twitter account to post your Buzz updates to your Twitter stream.

What differentiates Buzz from Twitter, and the reason I think I'm going to like it so much, is its seamless integration with Google products--particularly Gmail. For those of you who already have Gmail accounts, once you sign up for Buzz (you can do so here), you'll see a label just under your inbox called "Buzz". You can go in there to see friends who have posted updates, comment on those posts, or post your own updates. You can do all this with Twitter, but Twitter doesn't do as good of a job bringing the conversation to you. For example, if I post an update on Twitter and a friend @replies me, I won't see that reply unless I go into Twitter and look through my stream. Or, I can use a third party app and look at my mentions. The point is, I have to go searching for those replies. Buzz, on the other hand, will let you know when someone comments on your update by showing up in the Buzz label and your Gmail inbox. From right there within Gmail, you can comment back.

It's day 1 of Buzz, but I'm already pleased with what I see. In fact, if you're following me on Buzz, you'll get this blog post in your Buzz box and can comment on it from there. Pretty sweet if I do say so myself.

For those of you holding out on getting a Gmail account, I would encourage to quit fighting the Google domination and join in on the fun.

The Ultimate Under-Estimation

Ok, so I severely underestimated how much free time I would have for blogging after having a child. But after several friends commented that they missed my political commentary, I think it's time to jump back in the game. I am honored that anyone would like to hear my opinion, so the least I can do is resume spouting my rhetoric on this forum for my 2 or 3 loyal fans. Nothing in mind tonight, but just wanted to let you know I'm back.