(2436,1,'2011-11-22 10:00:00','2011-11-22 18:00:00','<div>\r\n<div>\r\n<div>\r\n<div>\r\n<div>\r\n\r\nA little while ago, I had a very deep conversation with some friends about women in the church. One of my friends strongly holds to the idea of a male dominated society \"as God ordained\", and the other two hold the opposite view, that “women are equal.”  I grew up in a family that empowered women.  I always saw the female voice as valuable because it was valuable in my home, but not my church.  My mom was integral to the function of the church and yet she was never invited up front.  There was a quiet saying in the pews that, \"men made the church, but women made the church run.\"\r\n\r\nI understand both positions and coming from a male perspective have wondered what it would be like to be a women in a male dominated society. The church has always been patriarchal. For some reason God chose to use men as the primary leaders in his mission of restoration. All the fathers of the faith are men (Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, Joseph, Isaiah, Jeremiah, etc.). Jesus chose twelve men to be his disciples. Paul wrote the primary bulk of the New Testament epistles. The role of men in God’s mission is just obvious.\r\n\r\nBut women also do play an important role in his mission. None of those men would be where they were if it weren’t for their mothers. When I look at the women in Scripture, especially the women who followed Jesus, they seemed to get it more than the men. The first person to anoint Jesus was a woman. It was women who were with Jesus at the cross. It was a woman who sat at Jesus’ feet. It was a woman who first went to visit Jesus at the grave. Women just seem to get it before men sometimes.\r\n\r\nI don’t really want women to be equal in the traditional sense, always competing for the top rung, whatever that is. I don’t want women to be like me or like my buddies. I think when women try to be men, they miss the beauty of what it means to be feminine. The women I know who try to compete with men inevitably miss their own humanity. What I really want to know is why God chose to make us different. What is the real value of our differences?\r\n\r\nI didn’t choose how God lives out the mission of restoration. I didn’t set humanity and gender roles. God did. I also don’t want women to be reduced to subservient add-ons that serve a purpose when we need them sexually, or for care-taking purposes. So how to we find a way to coexist in harmony and congruence, especially in leadership? Maybe there’s a third way, a way that elevates women to the glorious gift that they are in our lives.\r\n\r\nI do want to see women the way love would see them. My friend asked, \"How do we discover and lift up each other’s humanity? How do we, as men, lift up women? I just know that love elevates.\"\r\n\r\nSo I’m left with a wonder that men, in our silly need to subjugate women, we may be missing something. Maybe women sometimes see it better than we do. And when they are pushed down we miss one of the real ways that God is speaking to us. I know that when I really need to listen to God, my wife is one of the first people I trust to speak honestly with me. She has been one of the primary ways I hear how my Heavenly Father is speaking to me. She has validated what I am feeling (even when I don’t like it) more often than I care to admit.\r\n\r\nMaybe if men learn to listen to women a little more, we’ll begin listening to a different voice that has always been available to us, a voice of reason and compassion. A voice of love. Maybe men have spent so much time pushing women down, we’ve missed one of God’s glorious ways of speaking to us, providing us wisdom when we most need it.\r\n\r\nSo my question is, “How do we find a way to lift women up in the church?”\r\n\r\n</div>\r\n</div>\r\n</div>\r\n</div>\r\n</div>','Women In The Church','','publish','open','open','','women-in-the-church','','','2011-11-21 12:13:01','2011-11-21 20:13:01','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=2436',0,'post','',35),(2433,1,'2011-11-21 11:38:28','2011-11-21 19:38:28','I like to harvest my own jalapeño and poblano seeds from my garden. The first time I did this, I didn\'t use gloves. My hands were soon covered with a fierce burning sensation that made it impossible to think about anything else. Then I did something very stupid. I itched my nose. This made me sneeze repeatedly. So my eyes got itchy, and before I knew it, I had spread the evil pepper juice to my eyes as well. Every time I tried to wash a part of me that was on fire, it made the burning spread. It took several painful experiences like this before I caved and made the very unmanly move of buying some latex gloves to handle my peppers with.\r\n\r\nPepper spray is made of concentrated capsaicin, the chemical that makes peppers hot. The difference between my painful pepper seed harvesting experience and what the UC Davis students felt who got pepper-sprayed last Friday is that they got a several hundred times more intense version of my pain sprayed deliberately into their faces from point-blank range. Though I\'ve never been pepper-sprayed, I have some idea based on my painful experience what pepper spray might do to a person physically. But what else does it do?\r\n\r\nWhat does pepper spray do to the person spraying it? Lieutenant John Pike is the police officer who sprayed the students. Since he\'s a cop on a college campus (and not in the hood), this might have been his first time using pepper spray. What does it do to your humanity when you watch other human beings suffer intense pain because of what you sprayed into their faces? I suspect it\'s different if you\'re caught in an adrenalin rush when someone physically attacks you. But wouldn\'t it mess with your head to spray people who are sitting on the ground and the most threatening thing they\'ve done is to link arms and try to hide their eyes underneath their sweater when they see your pepper spray can?\r\n\r\nWhen you do something like that, does the memory haunt you? Do you have bad dreams about it? Or do you change the story in your mind and conjure up a way that your victim was attacking you? This sounds like what UC Davis campus police chief Annette Spicuzza is <a href=\"http://www.sacbee.com/2011/11/19/4066159/10-occupy-protesters-arrested.html\">trying to do</a>. She said the police were surrounded by a crowd and felt \"threatened.\" The only problem with that narrative is that, in the <a href=\"http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BjnR7xET7Uo\">youtube video</a>, Lt. Pike actually <em>steps over</em> the seated protesters right before spraying them (so it\'s pretty hard to argue that they were an obstacle to his passage).\r\n\r\nThis brings us to another effect of pepper spray: the perception of the public who hear about the story. Since pepper spray is what you use on a guy in a dark alley who\'s about to mug you, the assumption is that if people get pepper sprayed, they must have done something violent. It\'s been interesting to watch university officials try to redefine the boundaries of nonviolence in response to to these incidents. UC Berkeley chancellor Robert Birgeneau <a href=\"http://www.dailycal.org/2011/11/10/campus-administrators-send-out-message-responding-to-occupy-cal-demonstrations/\">wrote</a> that \"linking arms and forming a human chain to prevent the police from gaining access to the tents... is not non-violent civil disobedience.\" So linking arms has now become violent? When most people reading these stories see pepper spray, they assume that whoever was on the receiving end must have deserved it, so nonviolence is allowed to be redefined in popular discourse.\r\n\r\nStill, there\'s one positive thing that happens to people who get pepper sprayed. When you suffer for what you believe in, it\'s the ultimate validation of your faith that inspires you to fight for your cause all the more zealously. This was what the Roman Empire could not understand about the early Christians. Every time they threw another one to the lions, they added lighter fluid to the fire they were trying to stomp out which eventually burned their empire down. The Jewish religious authorities had a similar experience in Acts 5:40-42:\r\n<blockquote><em>They called the apostles in and had them flogged. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name. Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Messiah.</em></blockquote>\r\nThe flogging of the Sanhedrin made the apostles rejoice because it validated their faith. I\'m not saying it makes the UC Davis students\' opinions \"right\" just because they got pepper-sprayed. I\'m ambivalent about the Occupy protests in general, because I believe the way to change the world is through the long, boring process of Christian discipleship.\r\n\r\nBut I do wonder what it means that few Christians in our country today \"have been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name\" (unlike Christians in Pakistan and other places). What does it say about Christians that we <em>aren\'t</em> getting pepper-sprayed? Jesus tells His disciples that the world will hate them because it hated Him (John 15:18). I have really hated it every time I\'ve had pepper juice on my face, but maybe one day God will count me worthy of suffering for the name of Jesus.','What Does Pepper Spray Do?','','inherit','open','open','','2405-revision-3','','','2011-11-21 11:38:28','2011-11-21 19:38:28','',2405,'http://provoketive.com/2011/11/21/2405-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(2430,24,'2011-11-21 11:08:40','2011-11-21 19:08:40','God decided He was tired of humanity, tired of the incessant selfish requests. He called His angels in for advice. \"I would like to go somewhere were these humans will not find me.\"\nOne angel spoke up, \"Hide on the highest mountain, they will not find you there.\"\nAnother angel said, \"The bottom of the deepest ocean.\"\nOne angel shouted, \"The dark side of the moon, they cannot see you there.\"\nGod not satisfied that these suggestions would hide Him, He summoned His wisest angel and asked him, \"Where can I hide so that these humans will not find me?\"\nThe angel smiled and replied, \"hide in their hearts, for they fear to look within.\"\n\nWith the worlds current events getting so much attention and the endless banter between politicians, governments and corporations it may appear that our world has lost its mind. One can find oneself lost it trying to fix all sorts of systems and entities to make the world a safe place to live. I would like to point out a view of things that allows one to loose interest in getting something from this world. Instead I will point to a Reality the demands nothings, asks for nothing, it simply is what it is. For some this is to simple, or boring. They are far more interested in fixing others and entertaining themselves in the drama of their lives.\n\nOne can liken the addiction we have to the drama of this world as to walking into a room of people watching their favorite soap opera. At the climax you walk up and turn the TV off. Now just imagine the response. Anger, yelling, pushing and shoving are likely effects of disconnecting people from their entertainment. Another example would be to walking into a crowded bar on a playoff night, turn the power off just prior to the end of a close game. Do you see the same reactions? One does not have to condemn this addiction we see to prevalent in society, one just at some point to decide whether or not to continue to participate in it.\n\nThose of you who were raised in any sort of religion, culture/ethnicity, sports team loyalists, soap opera fanatics upbringing were usually told what to believe and why. Even if you were not told directly it was obvious by the behavior of your family.  \"We are Bronco fans because we live in Colorado.\" We hate the Raiders and Chargers with a passion!\"  We are Catholics?Protestants/ Buddhists ect because we have been this faith for generations.\n\nHow do we know if anything is true? Can our thoughts, perceptions, families beliefs and customs be trusted as Truth?\n\n<strong>\"Man is intrinsically innocent because he can only choose what he perceives to be good.\" - Socrates</strong>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/YoungOldWoman.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-1976\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/YoungOldWoman-210x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"210\" height=\"300\" /></a>\n\nLooking at this picture, what do you see?\n\nIs this your wife or mother-in-law?\nWhich perception is real?\nDoes one negate the other?\nDo both exist simultaneously?\n\nI John 2: 9-11 Anyone who claims to live in God\'s light and hates a brother or sister is still in the dark. It\'s the person who loves brother and sister who dwells in God\'s light and doesn\'t block the light from others. But whoever hates is still in the dark, stumbles around in the dark, doesn\'t know which end is up, blinded by the darkness.\n\nLook around the room you are in. Is it possible to see the light? Or can you only see that with which the light illuminates?\n\nA persons way of speaking, behavior and thought process simply reveals what they are aligned with. Light doe not judge or condemn, its simply reveals what is. God is light and in Him there is no shadow or darkness. So evil is not the opposite or antithesis of God, but simply his absence. Perception is then extremely subjective.\n\nOur perceptions are derived from a mind that searches for the meaning of what it perceives or in other words identifies with. If the mind believes something has value it then desires it. Thoughts and feelings arise from desire, and the mind desires what it values.\n\nOur minds as children are innocent, like a brand new Mac Book Pro without any software. We then observe our families our culture our entertainment and we pick up the software that runs our minds value system which is called perception.\n\n<img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-2425\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Prism-300x186.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"186\" />\n\nLike this prism, perception derived from programming interprets the light and breaks it into categories. We then judge, evaluate and determine if what we see if valuable or something we would like to avoid.\n\nPerhaps the statement Jesus made in Matthew is an invitaion to return to that inncocence. To shed our ideas of ourselves and this world. To give up trying to fix everything out there and simply turning within to explore what we fear the most, our heart.\n\n<strong>“Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.\" Matthew 18:3</strong>\n\n&nbsp;','Perception is Deception, Part 1','','inherit','open','open','','1975-revision-18','','','2011-11-21 11:08:40','2011-11-21 19:08:40','',1975,'http://provoketive.com/2011/11/21/1975-revision-18/',0,'revision','',0),(2429,24,'2011-11-21 11:05:04','2011-11-21 19:05:04','God decided He was tired of humanity, tired of the incessant selfish requests. He called His angels in for advice. \"I would like to go somewhere were these humans will not find me.\"\nOne angel spoke up, \"Hide on the highest mountain, they will not find you there.\"\nAnother angel said, \"The bottom of the deepest ocean.\"\nOne angel shouted, \"The dark side of the moon, they cannot see you there.\"\nGod not satisfied that these suggestions would hide Him, He summoned His wisest angel and asked him, \"Where can I hide so that these humans will not find me?\"\nThe angel smiled and replied, \"hide in their hearts, for they fear to look within.\"\n\nWith the worlds current events getting so much attention and the endless banter between politicians, governments and corporations it may appear that our world has lost its mind. One can find oneself lost it trying to fix all sorts of systems and entities to make the world a safe place to live. I would like to point out a view of things that allows one to loose interest in getting something from this world. Instead I will point to a Reality the demands nothings, asks for nothing, it simply is what it is. For some this is to simple, or boring. They are far more interested in fixing others and entertaining themselves in the drama of their lives.\n\nOne can liken the addiction we have to the drama of this world as to walking into a room of people watching their favorite soap opera. At the climax you walk up and turn the TV off. Now just imagine the response. Anger, yelling, pushing and shoving are likely effects of disconnecting people from their entertainment. Another example would be to walking into a crowded bar on a playoff night, turn the power off just prior to the end of a close game. Do you see the same reactions? One does not have to condemn this addiction we see to prevalent in society, one just at some point to decide whether or not to continue to participate in it.\n\nThose of you who were raised in any sort of religion, culture/ethnicity, sports team loyalists, soap opera fanatics upbringing were usually told what to believe and why. Even if you were not told directly it was obvious by the behavior of your family.  \"We are Bronco fans because we live in Colorado.\" We hate the Raiders and Chargers with a passion!\"  We are Catholics?Protestants/ Buddhists ect because we have been this faith for generations.\n\nHow do we know if anything is true? Can our thoughts, perceptions, families beliefs and customs be trusted as Truth?\n\n<strong>\"Man is intrinsically innocent because he can only choose what he perceives to be good.\" - Socrates</strong>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/YoungOldWoman.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-1976\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/YoungOldWoman-210x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"210\" height=\"300\" /></a>\n\nLooking at this picture, what do you see?\n\nIs this your wife or mother-in-law?\nWhich perception is real?\nDoes one negate the other?\nDo both exist simultaneously?\n\nI John 2: 9-11 Anyone who claims to live in God\'s light and hates a brother or sister is still in the dark. It\'s the person who loves brother and sister who dwells in God\'s light and doesn\'t block the light from others. But whoever hates is still in the dark, stumbles around in the dark, doesn\'t know which end is up, blinded by the darkness.\n\nLook around the room you are in. Is it possible to see the light? Or can you only see that with which the light illuminates?\n\nA persons way of speaking, behavior and thought process simply reveals what they are aligned with. Light doe not judge or condemn, its simply reveals what is. God is light and in Him there is no shadow or darkness. So evil is not the opposite or antithesis of God, but simply his absence. Perception is then extremely subjective.\n\nOur perceptions are derived from a mind that searches for the meaning of what it perceives or in other words identifies with. If the mind believes something has value it then desires it. Thoughts and feelings arise from desire, and the mind desires what it values.\n\nOur minds as children are innocent, like a brand new Mac Book Pro without any software. We then observe our families our culture our entertainment and we pick up the software that runs our minds value system which is called perception.\n\n<img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-2425\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Prism-300x186.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"186\" />\n\nLike this prism, perception derived from programming interprets the light and breaks it into categories. We then judge, evaluate and determine if what we see if valuable or something we would like to avoid.\n\nPerhaps the statement Jesus made in Matthew is an invitaion to return to that inncocence. To shed our ideas of ourselves and this world. To give up trying to fix everything out there and simply turning within to explore what we fear the most, our heart.\n\n<strong>“Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.\" Matthew 18:3</strong>\n\n&nbsp;','Perception is Deception, Part 1','','inherit','open','open','','1975-revision-17','','','2011-11-21 11:05:04','2011-11-21 19:05:04','',1975,'http://provoketive.com/2011/11/21/1975-revision-17/',0,'revision','',0),(2427,24,'2011-11-21 10:56:07','2011-11-21 18:56:07','God decided He was tired of humanity, tired of the incessant selfish requests. He called His angels in for advice. \"I would like to go somewhere were these humans will not find me,\" God said to the angels. One angel spoke up, \"Hide on the highest mountain, they will not find you there.\" Another angel said, \"The bottom of the deepest ocean.\" One angel shouted, \"The dark side of the moon, they cannot see you there.\" God not satisfied that these suggestions would hide Him, He summoned His wisest angel and asked him, \"Where can I hide so that these humans will not find me?\" The angel smiled and replied, \"hide in their hearts, for they fear to look within.\"\r\n\r\nWith the worlds current events getting so much attention and the endless banter between politicians, governments and corporations it may appear that our world has lost its mind. One can find oneself lost it trying to fix all sorts of systems and entities to make the world a safe place to live. I would like to point out a view of things that allows one to loose interest in getting something from this world. Instead I will point to a Reality the demands nothings, asks for nothing, it simply is what it is. For some this is to simple, or boring. They are far more interested in fixing others and entertaining themselves in the drama of their lives.\r\n\r\nOne can liken the addiction we have to the drama of this world as to walking into a room of people watching their favorite soap opera. At the climax you walk up and turn the TV off. Now just imagine the response. Anger, yelling, pushing and shoving are likely effects of disconnecting people from their entertainment. Another example would be to walking into a crowded bar on a playoff night, turn the power off just prior to the end of a close game. Do you see the same reactions? One does not have to condemn this addiction we see to prevalent in society, one just at some point to decide whether or not to continue to participate in it.\r\n\r\nThose of you who were raised in any sort of religion, culture/ethnicity, sports team loyalists, soap opera fanatics upbringing were usually told what to believe and why. Even if you were not told directly it was obvious by the behavior of your family.  \"We are Bronco fans because we live in Colorado.\" We hate the Raiders and Chargers with a passion!\"  We are Catholics?Protestants/ Buddhists ect because we have been this faith for generations.\r\n\r\nHow do we know if anything is true? Can our thoughts, perceptions, families beliefs and customs be trusted as Truth?\r\n\r\n<strong>\"Man is intrinsically innocent because he can only choose what he perceives to be good.\" - Socrates</strong>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/YoungOldWoman.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-1976\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/YoungOldWoman-210x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"210\" height=\"300\" /></a>\r\n\r\nLooking at this picture, what do you see?\r\n\r\nIs this your wife or mother-in-law?\r\nWhich perception is real?\r\nDoes one negate the other?\r\nDo both exist simultaneously?\r\n\r\nI John 2: 9-11 Anyone who claims to live in God\'s light and hates a brother or sister is still in the dark. It\'s the person who loves brother and sister who dwells in God\'s light and doesn\'t block the light from others. But whoever hates is still in the dark, stumbles around in the dark, doesn\'t know which end is up, blinded by the darkness.\r\n\r\nLook around the room you are in. Is it possible to see the light? Or can you only see that with which the light illuminates?\r\n\r\nA persons way of speaking, behavior and thought process simply reveals what they are aligned with. Light doe not judge or condemn, its simply reveals what is. God is light and in Him there is no shadow or darkness. So evil is not the opposite or antithesis of God, but simply his absence. Perception is then extremely subjective.\r\n\r\nOur perceptions are derived from a mind that searches for the meaning of what it perceives or in other words identifies with. If the mind believes something has value it then desires it. Thoughts and feelings arise from desire, and the mind desires what it values.\r\n\r\nOur minds as children are innocent, like a brand new Mac Book Pro without any software. We then observe our families our culture our entertainment and we pick up the software that runs our minds value system which is called perception.\r\n\r\nLike this prism, perception derived from programming interprets the light and breaks it into categories. We then judge, evaluate and determine if what we see if valuable or something we would like to avoid. <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Prism.gif\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-2425\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Prism-300x186.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"186\" /></a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Perception is Deception','','inherit','open','open','','1975-revision-15','','','2011-11-21 10:56:07','2011-11-21 18:56:07','',1975,'http://provoketive.com/2011/11/21/1975-revision-15/',0,'revision','',0),(2425,24,'2011-11-21 10:54:43','2011-11-21 18:54:43','','Prism','','inherit','open','open','','prism','','','2011-11-21 10:54:43','2011-11-21 18:54:43','',1975,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Prism.gif',0,'attachment','image/gif',0),(2426,24,'2011-11-21 10:55:53','2011-11-21 18:55:53','God decided He was tired of humanity, tired of the incessant selfish requests. He called His angels in for advice. \"I would like to go somewhere were these humans will not find me,\" God said to the angels. One angel spoke up, \"Hide on the highest mountain, they will not find you there.\" Another angel said, \"The bottom of the deepest ocean.\" One angel shouted, \"The dark side of the moon, they cannot see you there.\" God not satisfied that these suggestions would hide Him, He summoned His wisest angel and asked him, \"Where can I hide so that these humans will not find me?\" The angel smiled and replied, \"hide in their hearts, for they fear to look within.\"\n\nWith the worlds current events getting so much attention and the endless banter between politicians, governments and corporations it may appear that our world has lost its mind. One can find oneself lost it trying to fix all sorts of systems and entities to make the world a safe place to live. I would like to point out a view of things that allows one to loose interest in getting something from this world. Instead I will point to a Reality the demands nothings, asks for nothing, it simply is what it is. For some this is to simple, or boring. They are far more interested in fixing others and entertaining themselves in the drama of their lives.\n\nOne can liken the addiction we have to the drama of this world as to walking into a room of people watching their favorite soap opera. At the climax you walk up and turn the TV off. Now just imagine the response. Anger, yelling, pushing and shoving are likely effects of disconnecting people from their entertainment. Another example would be to walking into a crowded bar on a playoff night, turn the power off just prior to the end of a close game. Do you see the same reactions? One does not have to condemn this addiction we see to prevalent in society, one just at some point to decide whether or not to continue to participate in it.\n\nThose of you who were raised in any sort of religion, culture/ethnicity, sports team loyalists, soap opera fanatics upbringing were usually told what to believe and why. Even if you were not told directly it was obvious by the behavior of your family.  \"We are Bronco fans because we live in Colorado.\" We hate the Raiders and Chargers with a passion!\"  We are Catholics?Protestants/ Buddhists ect because we have been this faith for generations.\n\nHow do we know if anything is true? Can our thoughts, perceptions, families beliefs and customs be trusted as Truth?\n\n<strong>\"Man is intrinsically innocent because he can only choose what he perceives to be good.\" - Socrates</strong>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/YoungOldWoman.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-1976\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/YoungOldWoman-210x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"210\" height=\"300\" /></a>\n\nLooking at this picture, what do you see?\n\nIs this your wife or mother-in-law?\nWhich perception is real?\nDoes one negate the other?\nDo both exist simultaneously?\n\nI John 2: 9-11 Anyone who claims to live in God\'s light and hates a brother or sister is still in the dark. It\'s the person who loves brother and sister who dwells in God\'s light and doesn\'t block the light from others. But whoever hates is still in the dark, stumbles around in the dark, doesn\'t know which end is up, blinded by the darkness.\n\nLook around the room you are in. Is it possible to see the light? Or can you only see that with which the light illuminates?\n\nA persons way of speaking, behavior and thought process simply reveals what they are aligned with. Light doe not judge or condemn, its simply reveals what is. God is light and in Him there is no shadow or darkness. So evil is not the opposite or antithesis of God, but simply his absence. Perception is then extremely subjective.\n\nOur perceptions are derived from a mind that searches for the meaning of what it perceives or in other words identifies with. If the mind believes something has value it then desires it. Thoughts and feelings arise from desire, and the mind desires what it values.\n\nOur minds as children are innocent, like a brand new Mac Book Pro without any software. We then observe our families our culture our entertainment and we pick up the software that runs our minds value system which is called perception.\n\nLike this prism, perception derived from programming interprets the light and breaks it into categories. We then judge, evaluate and determine if wh<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Prism.gif\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-2425\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Prism-300x186.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"186\" /></a>\n\n&nbsp;\n\n&nbsp;','Perception is Deception','','inherit','open','open','','1975-revision-14','','','2011-11-21 10:55:53','2011-11-21 18:55:53','',1975,'http://provoketive.com/2011/11/21/1975-revision-14/',0,'revision','',0),(2418,0,'2011-11-21 07:44:58','2011-11-21 15:44:58','Walking in the presence of giants here. Cool thinking all aruond!\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Quiana\nAUTHOR EMAIL: solodnapitki@yandex.ru\nAUTHOR URL: http://www.bing.com/\nSUBJECT: [Provoketive Magazine] You Are a Pumpkin \nIP: 109.230.216.60\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Quiana\n    [Email] =&gt; solodnapitki@yandex.ru\n    [Website] =&gt; http://www.bing.com/\n    [Message] =&gt; Walking in the presence of giants here. Cool thinking all aruond!\n)\n','Quiana - 2011-11-21 07:44:58','','publish','open','open','','a5f621de43e297984b1e069f14fb576d','','','2011-11-21 07:44:58','2011-11-21 15:44:58','',1531,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=2418',0,'feedback','',0),(2419,0,'2011-11-21 09:17:39','2011-11-21 17:17:39','I see, I spuopse that would have to be the case.\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Celina\nAUTHOR EMAIL: info@bitkomp.pl\nAUTHOR URL: http://www.facebook.com/\nSUBJECT: [Provoketive Magazine] Happy Valley Under a Cloud\nIP: 109.230.216.225\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Celina\n    [Email] =&gt; info@bitkomp.pl\n    [Website] =&gt; http://www.facebook.com/\n    [Message] =&gt; I see, I spuopse that would have to be the case.\n)\n','Celina - 2011-11-21 09:17:39','','publish','open','open','','46edb2c79512218d373927bb25f0cbb4','','','2011-11-21 09:17:39','2011-11-21 17:17:39','',2133,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=2419',0,'feedback','',0),(2406,57,'2011-11-20 10:50:19','2011-11-20 18:50:19','','UCDavis_pepperspray','','inherit','open','open','','ucdavis_pepperspray','','','2011-11-20 10:50:19','2011-11-20 18:50:19','',2405,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/UCDavis_pepperspray.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(2407,57,'2011-11-20 10:51:45','2011-11-20 18:51:45','','pepperspray portland','','inherit','open','open','','pepperspray-portland','','','2011-11-20 10:51:45','2011-11-20 18:51:45','',2405,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/pepperspray-portland.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(2397,1,'2011-11-20 09:09:23','2011-11-20 17:09:23','<a href=\"http://www.life.com/hdgallery/66721/image/ugc1273001/lifes-20-worst-covers#index/1\">Life Magazine published it\'s 20 most regrettable covers online recently</a>. Some of them were simply awful. It was a fun way for them to look back on some of their past mistakes and call themselves out for poor oversight and design. They basically said in an enjoyable manner, \"We messed up and here are our awful mistakes for everyone to see.\"\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/life55.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-2334\" title=\"life55\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/life55-231x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"172\" height=\"223\" /></a>It made me reflect for a moment. I have a lot of moments in my life that I dwell on from my past that were not so good. They are moments my mind drifts back to that I cling to selfishly, wishing they would be wiped away. Some of them are regrettable moments that others will remember where I made a terrible error. Other moments are things that have no history besides being written on the pages of my mind. But all of them I still remember in vivid color, like the cover of a magazine.\r\n\r\nHere\'s a really stupid one. When I was in college, we had intramural flag football. One game, we were playing against a team that we really didn\'t like. In fact, I couldn\'t stand one of the guys on the offensive line. I\'m not a big guy at all, but during one play, I got overly aggressive and gave him a cheap shot when the play was over. It was unnecessary. What made it really memorable was when the team ran a play to my side the next time and three of them planted me on my butt.\r\n\r\nI stewed about it for a week. Well, more than a week. Fifteen years. It still makes me angry. Angry that I let my emotions get the best of me. Angry that I got knocked down. And it was not one of my proudest moments. But it\'s still there.\r\n\r\nIs it that big of a deal? Yes. No.\r\n\r\nIt\'s one of the covers of my life I\'d publish if I were doing \"regrettable moments\" from my life. There are more. A lot more. Worse moments. We all have them.\r\n\r\nMaybe we had a chance to help someone in need. Maybe we turned our back on a friend. Maybe we said something we couldn\'t take back. Maybe we did something we have never told anyone. And we hold onto it forever.\r\n\r\nWhile doing interviews <a href=\"http://store.civitaspress.com/books/284\">for my upcoming book</a>, I was interviewing a fellow fallen pastor. He said one of the most remarkable things I\'ve ever heard. I asked him something along the lines of, \"What do you wish had happened differently?\"\r\n\r\nHe didn\'t hesitate. He said, <em>\"The past can be slavery and the future can be idolatry. Don\'t look back, don\'t look too far forward or you\'ll miss what\'s happening right now where the kingdom and spirit are.\"</em>\r\n\r\nThat gave me tremendous peace. There\'s a time to put away the horrendous covers of our past failures and least memorable moments. Sure, it\'s hard to forget them when they\'ve been published and put out there for the world to see. But that doesn\'t mean we have to keep rereading the same material over and over again, reminding ourselves of the past.\r\n\r\nThere\'s \"Life\" going on now that demands to be cherished and lived.','Viewing the Past in Vivid, Regrettable Color','','inherit','open','open','','2333-revision-5','','','2011-11-20 09:09:23','2011-11-20 17:09:23','',2333,'http://provoketive.com/2011/11/20/2333-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(2388,0,'2011-11-19 10:33:27','2011-11-19 18:33:27','Christianity &amp; world religions and if one is \'better\' than the other (spoiler alert: i propose the answer to be \'no\').\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Bronwen Henry\nAUTHOR EMAIL: bronwen.henry@newchurch.org\nAUTHOR URL: http://notreally\nSUBJECT: Provoketive Magazine Writing For Provoketive\nIP: 66.16.105.41\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Bronwen Henry\n    [Email] =&gt; bronwen.henry@newchurch.org\n    [Existing Blog or Website] =&gt; not really\n    [List the topic you are interested writing about] =&gt; Christianity &amp; world religions and if one is \'better\' than the other (spoiler alert: i propose the answer to be \'no\').\n    [Current or New WordPress Login Name (We\'ll send you a password.)] =&gt; bronwen.henry\n)\n','Bronwen Henry - 2011-11-19 10:33:27','','publish','open','open','','3cda0fb64794711ccd5a2281768527cf','','','2011-11-19 10:33:27','2011-11-19 18:33:27','',358,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=2388',0,'feedback','',0),(2389,80,'2011-11-19 10:22:01','2011-11-19 18:22:01','Dear Occupiers;\n\nFirst of all, I want to say what you guys have done is absolutely amazing.   In two months, you accomplished what groups like Sojourners and the more liberal mainstream churches have been working on for years: turning the conversation away from greed and consumerism and toward fairness and justice for everyone.  You grabbed us by the shirt and yelled \"THIS ISN\'T THE WAY IT\'S SUPPOSED TO BE!\"  Through non-violent protest and civil disobedience, you exposed just how disfunctional the current system is for most Americans.  By refusing to accept the status quo and fade away, you have focused our attention on income inequality in a way that brings it home to everyone.  The effectiveness of your movement is attested to by the fact that <a href=\"http://upwithchrishayes.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/11/19/8896362-exclusive-lobbying-firms-memo-spells-out-plan-to-undermine-occupy-wall-street-video\" target=\"_blank\">lobbyists are courting banks and financial groups</a> to discredit you and any politicians who align themselves with you.  That speaks volumes about what you\'ve done and will do in the future.\n\nIt\'s that future I really want to talk to you about.  The Occupy movement is a period of transition right now and how you handle this will determine whether it keeps going or collapses in on itself.  As someone who believes whole-heartedly in your cause, but remains on the sidlines, I\'d like to offer a few suggestions:','An Open Letter to Occupy Wall Street','','inherit','open','open','','2376-revision-3','','','2011-11-19 10:22:01','2011-11-19 18:22:01','',2376,'http://provoketive.com/2011/11/19/2376-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(633,1,'2011-10-07 11:29:35','2011-10-07 18:29:35','A few years ago, Jose Saramago, who won a Nobel Peace Prize for literature, said this:\r\n<blockquote>The Bible is a manual of bad morals [which] has a powerful influence on our culture and even our way of life. Without the Bible, we would be different and probably better people.</blockquote>\r\nHe want on to describe the Bible as \"a catalog of cruelty and of what\'s worst in human nature.\" Though I am a life-long follower of Jesus, there are many days when I think Jose may be right.\r\n<h2>If We Didn\'t Have the Bible</h2>\r\nIf we didn’t have the Bible, I wouldn’t have to try to reconcile the nightly news about rape, child molestation, earthquakes killing thousands, and war devastating entire countries with the Scriptural promise that God cares for us more than the birds of the air and flowers of the field.\r\n\r\nIf we didn’t have the Bible, I wouldn’t have to try to question, along with the Psalmist, why wicked people get rich and stay healthy, while God’s servants lose their homes, their children, their jobs, and their lives.\r\n\r\nIf we didn’t have the Bible, there might be fewer arguments about homosexuality, hell, and how to get to heaven. Sure, some of us still would argue, because we all want to be right. But if we didn’t have Bible verses to throw at each other, most of us would probably spend less time arguing and more time loving.\r\n\r\nIf we didn’t have the Bible, maybe there would be fewer sermons and Bible studies and more service of others and caring for one another.\r\n\r\nPeople say we need the Bible to get our questions answered, solve our problems in life, and provide direction on how to live. I just don\'t see that the Bible does this very well. It seems to create more questions and problems than it solves. It generates arguments, provides justification for war, and helps us condemn and hate others who do not believe or behave like us.\r\n\r\nYes, sometimes I think that life would be better without the Bible.\r\n<h2>I\'m Glad We Have the Bible</h2>\r\nBut then, if I didn’t have the Bible, I might know about Jesus. It is he that keeps me returning to Scripture. It is he who provides the lens through which I view life. It is he who shows me what love for others really looks like, and how service can be done in a way that both dignifies and provides help to others.\r\n\r\nAnd despite my discomfort with a lot of what is said in Scripture, and especially with the ways Scripture is sometimes used, Scripture seems to have been a source of comfort and guidance for Jesus. This tells me that there must be a way to accept Scripture, but still  live and love like Jesus, rather than like many who claim to be his followers.\r\n\r\nSo although I sometimes think life would be better without the Bible, what I probably mean is that life would be better without the way some people use the Bible. Maybe if I can learn to read the Bible like Jesus, as an inspiration for love, mercy, and forgiveness, rather than as a way to justify hate and war, I can once again be thankful for the Bible.','Better without the Bible','','inherit','open','open','','440-revision-3','','','2011-10-07 11:29:35','2011-10-07 18:29:35','',440,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/07/440-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(634,1,'2011-10-11 09:38:25','2011-10-11 16:38:25','In the movie Happy Gilmore, the main character  Happy is playing some golf with his amazing wind up drive. He reaches the green were his putting skill set are less then par, he is given some advice by his paired partner. \" The ball itself has its own life force or energy if you will.\" \"Its natural environment is in the hole.\" \"So why don\'t you send him home.\" \"His bags are packed, he\'s got his airplane tickets, bring him to the airport.\" \"Send him home.\" Happy seems to heed this advice and takes his put. The ball rolls short of the hole and Happy\'s anger erupts. \" Why didn\'t you just go to your home ball, that\'s your home!\"\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/happy-gilmore.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-490\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/happy-gilmore-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" /></a>\r\n\r\nWhether you are returning from a business trip, a long day at work or even a vacation, getting home seems to bring such  peace and contentment. What is it about being home that allows us to feel so comfortable? Maybe being home for you is  not comfortable, but you have discovered that place, the hill overlooking your town, or the creek in the woods, maybe  even Nordstroms for you is somewhere you feel you belong.\r\n\r\nIs that not what every one seems to be looking for? A place to be long. A place to connect with others who value the  same  things we do. Our childhood experiences have seemed to set us on a path, a searching for something, “out there,”  that  will complete us. I know in my journey I have gone high and low searching for that belonging, for those  connections that  will give me what I believe I really need. A place to be me, a place where the “me” I present is allowed,  accepted and  even loved. The truth is no such place has been found, \"out there,\"  it always turns into a performance,  doing, trying to please others.\r\n\r\nWord of Jesus: \"I\'ve loved you the way my Father has loved me. Make yourselves at home in my love. If you keep my commands, you\'ll remain intimately at home in my love. That\'s what I\'ve done—kept my Father\'s commands and made myself at home in his love.” John 15: 9-10\r\n\r\nIt seems that Jesus invited us to look somewhere else. Somewhere that would require courage and even a type of aloneness that can be uncomfortable. He says we can make ourselves “home” in His love. Jesus seems to be inviting us to end our search, to give up trying to belong. He says, “Make yourselves at home.” He does not say I will make you at home, no make yourselves at home. This invitation seems to draws up in awareness what I believe to be true about God, about myself and others. If I don’t believe I am lovable, how could I every make myself at home in love.\r\n\r\nPerhaps this requires an inward search. A plunge into the darkness of my own soul. Allowing fear, shame, guilt, depression, anger and pride to show themselves. Letting memories and experiences of pain surface, feeling alone, lost and broken. Jesus is inviting me to face these fears, turn into my pain allow Love to make itself at home in me. Let these painful experiences know that they are welcome here, they are acceptable. This home is a safe place to love ourselves no matter what we find within.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Going Home','','inherit','open','open','','489-revision-2','','','2011-10-11 09:38:25','2011-10-11 16:38:25','',489,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/11/489-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(635,1,'2011-10-18 07:54:18','2011-10-18 14:54:18','In the movie Happy Gilmore, the main character  Happy is playing some golf with his amazing wind up drive. He reaches the green were his putting skill set are less then par, he is given some advice by his paired partner. \" The ball itself has its own life force or energy if you will.\" \"Its natural environment is in the hole.\" \"So why don\'t you send him home.\" \"His bags are packed, he\'s got his airplane tickets, bring him to the airport.\" \"Send him home.\" Happy seems to heed this advice and takes his put. The ball rolls short of the hole and Happy\'s anger erupts. \" Why didn\'t you just go to your home ball, that\'s your home!\"\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/happy-gilmore.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-490\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/happy-gilmore-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" /></a>\r\n\r\nWhether you are returning from a business trip, a long day at work or even a vacation, getting home seems to bring such  peace and contentment. What is it about being home that allows us to feel so comfortable? Maybe being home for you is  not comfortable, but you have discovered that place, the hill overlooking your town, or the creek in the woods, maybe  even Nordstroms for you is somewhere you feel you belong.\r\n\r\nIs that not what every one seems to be looking for? A place to be long. A place to connect with others who value the  same  things we do. Our childhood experiences have seemed to set us on a path, a searching for something, “out there,”  that  will complete us. I know in my journey I have gone high and low searching for that belonging, for those  connections that  will give me what I believe I really need. A place to be me, a place where the “me” I present is allowed,  accepted and  even loved. The truth is no such place has been found, \"out there,\"  it always turns into a performance,  doing, trying to please others.\r\n\r\nWord of Jesus: \"I\'ve loved you the way my Father has loved me. Make yourselves at home in my love. If you keep my commands, you\'ll remain intimately at home in my love. That\'s what I\'ve done—kept my Father\'s commands and made myself at home in his love.” John 15: 9-10\r\n\r\nIt seems that Jesus invited us to look somewhere else. Somewhere that would require courage and even a type of aloneness that can be uncomfortable. He says we can make ourselves “home” in His love. Jesus seems to be inviting us to end our search, to give up trying to belong. He says, “Make yourselves at home.” He does not say I will make you at home, no make yourselves at home. This invitation seems to draws up in awareness what I believe to be true about God, about myself and others. If I don’t believe I am lovable, how could I every make myself at home in love.\r\n\r\nPerhaps this requires an inward search. A plunge into the darkness of my own soul. Allowing fear, shame, guilt, depression, anger and pride to show themselves. Letting memories and experiences of pain surface, feeling alone, lost and broken. Jesus is inviting me to face these fears, turn into my pain allow Love to make itself at home in me. Let these painful experiences know that they are welcome here, they are acceptable. This home is a safe place to love ourselves no matter what we find within.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Going Home','','inherit','open','open','','489-revision-3','','','2011-10-18 07:54:18','2011-10-18 14:54:18','',489,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/489-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(636,1,'2011-10-18 08:39:50','2011-10-18 15:39:50','In the movie Happy Gilmore, the main character  Happy is playing some golf with his amazing wind up drive. He reaches the green were his putting skill set are less then par, he is given some advice by his paired partner. \" The ball itself has its own life force or energy if you will.\" \"Its natural environment is in the hole.\" \"So why don\'t you send him home.\" \"His bags are packed, he\'s got his airplane tickets, bring him to the airport.\" \"Send him home.\" Happy seems to heed this advice and takes his put. The ball rolls short of the hole and Happy\'s anger erupts. \" Why didn\'t you just go to your home ball, that\'s your home!\"\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/happy-gilmore.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-490\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/happy-gilmore-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" /></a>\n\nWhether you are returning from a business trip, a long day at work or even a vacation, getting home seems to bring such  peace and contentment. What is it about being home that allows us to feel so comfortable? Maybe being home for you is  not comfortable, but you have discovered that place, the hill overlooking your town, or the creek in the woods, maybe  even Nordstroms for you is somewhere you feel you belong.\n\nIs that not what every one seems to be looking for? A place to be long. A place to connect with others who value the  same  things we do. Our childhood experiences have seemed to set us on a path, a searching for something, “out there,”  that  will complete us. I know in my journey I have gone high and low searching for that belonging, for those  connections that  will give me what I believe I really need. A place to be me, a place where the “me” I present is allowed,  accepted and  even loved. The truth is no such place has been found, \"out there,\"  it always turns into a performance,  doing, trying to please others.\n\nWord of Jesus: \"I\'ve loved you the way my Father has loved me. Make yourselves at home in my love. If you keep my commands, you\'ll remain intimately at home in my love. That\'s what I\'ve done—kept my Father\'s commands and made myself at home in his love.” John 15: 9-10\n\nIt seems that Jesus invited us to look somewhere else. Somewhere that would require courage and even a type of aloneness that can be uncomfortable. He says we can make ourselves “home” in His love. Jesus seems to be inviting us to end our search, to give up trying to belong. He says, “Make yourselves at home.” He does not say I will make you at home, no make yourselves at home. This invitation seems to draws up in awareness what I believe to be true about God, about myself and others. If I don’t believe I am lovable, how could I every make myself at home in love.\n\nPerhaps this requires an inward search. A plunge into the darkness of my own soul. Allowing fear, shame, guilt, depression, anger and pride to show themselves. Letting memories and experiences of pain surface, feeling alone, lost and broken. Jesus is inviting me to face these fears, turn into my pain allow Love to make itself at home in me. Let these painful experiences know that they are welcome here, they are acceptable. This home is a safe place to love ourselves no matter what we find within.\n\n&nbsp;','Going Home','','inherit','open','open','','489-autosave','','','2011-10-18 08:39:50','2011-10-18 15:39:50','',489,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/489-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(637,1,'2011-10-19 07:56:00','2011-10-19 14:56:00','There are two opportunities to advertise on Provoketive: Events and Banner Advertising.  All proceeds go towards creating this rich space of conversation and community.\n<h3>Events Listings</h3>\nProvoketive lists conferences and events under the main heading of Events.  To advertise your event is a $25 dollar listing fee.  That\'s it.\n<h3>Banner Advertising</h3>\nProvoketive Magazine attracts educated adults with an interest in life, culture, justice, spirituality, and current events. Banner advertising runs for 1 month as is available on a space availability basis.  There are two positions in the magazine: front page and all sub-pages.  Sub-page ads run in one of four main categories: life, faith, justice, culture.\n<h3>Large Advertisements: 630x125</h3>\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/630-Ad-Sample.png\"><img title=\"630 Ad Sample\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/630-Ad-Sample.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"630\" height=\"125\" /></a>\n\nLarge Advertisement Front Page Top: 630x125 = $150\n\nLarge Advertisement Front Page Bottom: 630x125 = $125\n\n&nbsp;\n<h3>Small Advertisements: 220x125</h3>\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/220-Sample-Ad.png\"><img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-641\" title=\"220 Sample Ad\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/220-Sample-Ad.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"220\" height=\"125\" /></a>\n\nSmall Advertisement Front Page Top: 220x125 = $75\n\nSmall Advertisement Front Page Middle: 220x125 = $60\n\n&nbsp;\n<h3>Sub Page Advertisements: 300x250</h3>\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/300-Ad-Sample.png\"><img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-687\" title=\"300 Ad Sample\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/300-Ad-Sample.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"250\" /></a>\n\nSub Page Advertisement Top: 300x250 = $75\n\nSub Page Advertisement Middle: 300x250 = $60\n\nSub Page Advertisement Bottom: 300x250 = $50\n\n&nbsp;\n<h3>Buying Ads</h3>\nTo purchase advertising, please contact Jonathan using the form below.  Someone will contact you within one business day.\n\n[contact-form] [contact-field label=\"Name\" type=\"name\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Email\" type=\"email\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Ad Space You Want To Buy\" type=\"url\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Comment\" type=\"textarea\" required=\"true\" /] [/contact-form]\n\n&nbsp;','Advertise on Provoketive','','inherit','open','open','','29-autosave','','','2011-10-19 07:56:00','2011-10-19 14:56:00','',29,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/29-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(638,1,'2011-10-18 09:04:07','2011-10-18 16:04:07','','630 Ad Sample','','inherit','open','open','','630-ad-sample','','','2011-10-18 09:04:07','2011-10-18 16:04:07','',29,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/630-Ad-Sample.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(639,1,'2011-10-02 15:17:49','2011-10-02 22:17:49','','Advertise on Provoketive','','inherit','open','open','','29-revision-2','','','2011-10-02 15:17:49','2011-10-02 22:17:49','',29,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/02/29-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(640,1,'2011-10-18 09:06:37','2011-10-18 16:06:37','There are two opportunities to advertise on Provoketive: Events and Banner Advertising.\r\n<h3>Events Listings</h3>\r\nProvoketive lists conferences and events under the main heading of Events.  To advertise your event is a $25 dollar listing fee.  That\'s it.\r\n<h3>Banner Advertising</h3>\r\nProvoketive Magazine attracts educated adults with an interest in life, culture, justice, spirituality, and current events. Banner advertising runs for 1 month.  There are two positions in the magazine: front page and all sub-pages.  Sub-page ads run in one of four main categories: life, faith, justice, culture.\r\n\r\nLarge Advertisement Front Page: 630x125 = $150\r\n\r\nLarge Advertisement Sub Page: 630x125 = $150\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/630-Ad-Sample.png\"><img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-638\" title=\"630 Ad Sample\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/630-Ad-Sample.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"630\" height=\"125\" /></a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Advertise on Provoketive','','inherit','open','open','','29-revision-3','','','2011-10-18 09:06:37','2011-10-18 16:06:37','',29,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/29-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(641,1,'2011-10-18 09:10:30','2011-10-18 16:10:30','','220 Sample Ad','','inherit','open','open','','220-sample-ad','','','2011-10-18 09:10:30','2011-10-18 16:10:30','',29,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/220-Sample-Ad.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(642,1,'2011-10-18 09:08:13','2011-10-18 16:08:13','There are two opportunities to advertise on Provoketive: Events and Banner Advertising.\r\n<h3>Events Listings</h3>\r\nProvoketive lists conferences and events under the main heading of Events.  To advertise your event is a $25 dollar listing fee.  That\'s it.\r\n<h3>Banner Advertising</h3>\r\nProvoketive Magazine attracts educated adults with an interest in life, culture, justice, spirituality, and current events. Banner advertising runs for 1 month as is available on a space availability basis.  There are two positions in the magazine: front page and all sub-pages.  Sub-page ads run in one of four main categories: life, faith, justice, culture.\r\n\r\nLarge Advertisement Front Page Top: 630x125 = $150\r\n\r\nLarge Advertisement Front Page Bottom: 630x125 = $125\r\n\r\nLarge Advertisement Sub Page: 630x125 = $100\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/630-Ad-Sample.png\"><img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-638\" title=\"630 Ad Sample\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/630-Ad-Sample.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"630\" height=\"125\" /></a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Advertise on Provoketive','','inherit','open','open','','29-revision-4','','','2011-10-18 09:08:13','2011-10-18 16:08:13','',29,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/29-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(643,1,'2011-10-17 15:31:33','2011-10-17 22:31:33','<span style=\"font-family: Calibri;font-size: small\">I was raised to believe that you might as well not ask God anything if you don’t believe 100%.  I was threatened with these verses in James 1:</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Calibri;font-size: small\"> </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Calibri;font-size: small\">“But it any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all men generously and without reproach and it will be given to him.  But let him ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.  For let not that man expect that he will receive anything from the Lord.”</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Calibri;font-size: small\"> </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Calibri;font-size: small\">So why bother praying?  I didn’t need God to tell me I was rejected.  I knew I had partial faith, and many times none at all.  I’d had enough rejection in life already, especially from people I wanted to love and accept me as I was.  Why bother seeking a God already angry at me?</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Calibri;font-size: small\"> </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Calibri;font-size: small\">The day came when I had so much compressed pain and anger, I exploded at God, wanting to hurt Him or Her as badly as I hurt.  I had nothing to lose.  I screamed at God, raging, cussing, lashing out at an unseen deity who had it out for me.  But I didn’t get what I expected.  God screamed back…love.  I fought dirty and God fought back, not to annihilate me, but to let me know it was OK to wrestle with Him/Her, bring all my doubt, pain, and partial faith to the mat.  I was unconditionally loved and accepted that way.  I didn’t know, and sometimes I still don’t know.  But I still keep coming back to that God who doesn’t mind a good fight.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Calibri;font-size: small\"> </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Calibri;font-size: small\">Partial Faith</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Calibri;font-size: small\"> </span>\r\n\r\nHooray for the victors who win the acclaim,\r\n\r\npay their all and achieve success,\r\n\r\napplause and medals, affirmation and praise.\r\n\r\nI mean it – they deserve recognition.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nBut what of those who give their best\r\n\r\nand are never renowned except with pity,\r\n\r\nfame for shame of failure again,\r\n\r\nwho earn crumbs for not quitting this time\r\n\r\nuntil perhaps they reach the bottom of the well.\r\n\r\nHow many times can you miss the mark\r\n\r\nwithout facing this isn’t your gift from God?\r\n\r\nWhy cry and try for what you can’t have –\r\n\r\nsalvation for others, not me?\r\n\r\nWe’re exempt for failure to trust\r\n\r\nand let go 100% like them who fit in.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nDoes God shrug and say,\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n<em>Let me know when you’re ready,</em>\r\n\r\n<em><span style=\"font-size: small\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri\">when your will no longer works for you?</span></span></em>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nWhat if partial faith is the best we have,\r\n\r\nwith no trust in people who martyr those with less success?\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nDo they really think we’ll volunteer\r\n\r\nfor pity, slander, and being ignored?\r\n\r\nWhere do we go except back out\r\n\r\nwhere at least we can succeed at being professional failures?\r\n\r\nWe don’t see God’s promises coming true.\r\n\r\nWhat’s the use of longing for what you can’t have?\r\n\r\nWe crave, like addicts, to be winners like them.\r\n\r\nAnd those that do, continue to try – at least, many do –\r\n\r\nwhile some die inside or altogether, alone.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nGod, you said you made me unique and precious,\r\n\r\nbut I see defection in your design.\r\n\r\nI believe and don’t,\r\n\r\ntry hard and won’t let go of you,\r\n\r\nfor the alternative is my own personal hell.\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Calibri;font-size: small\"> </span>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Is Partial Faith Enough For God?','','inherit','open','open','','582-revision-5','','','2011-10-17 15:31:33','2011-10-17 22:31:33','',582,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/17/582-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(644,1,'2011-10-18 09:19:27','2011-10-18 16:19:27','<span style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;\">I was raised to believe that you might as well not ask God anything if you don’t believe 100%.  I was threatened with these verses in James 1:</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;\"> </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;\">“But it any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all men generously and without reproach and it will be given to him.  But let him ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.  For let not that man expect that he will receive anything from the Lord.”</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;\"> </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;\">So why bother praying?  I didn’t need God to tell me I was rejected.  I knew I had partial faith, and many times none at all.  I’d had enough rejection in life already, especially from people I wanted to love and accept me as I was.  Why bother seeking a God already angry at me?</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;\"> </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;\">The day came when I had so much compressed pain and anger, I exploded at God, wanting to hurt Him or Her as badly as I hurt.  I had nothing to lose.  I screamed at God, raging, cussing, lashing out at an unseen deity who had it out for me.  But I didn’t get what I expected.  God screamed back…love.  I fought dirty and God fought back, not to annihilate me, but to let me know it was OK to wrestle with Him/Her, bring all my doubt, pain, and partial faith to the mat.  I was unconditionally loved and accepted that way.  I didn’t know, and sometimes I still don’t know.  But I still keep coming back to that God who doesn’t mind a good fight.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;\"> </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;\">Partial Faith</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;\"> </span>\r\n\r\nHooray for the victors who win the acclaim,\r\n\r\npay their all and achieve success,\r\n\r\napplause and medals, affirmation and praise.\r\n\r\nI mean it – they deserve recognition.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nBut what of those who give their best\r\n\r\nand are never renowned except with pity,\r\n\r\nfame for shame of failure again,\r\n\r\nwho earn crumbs for not quitting this time\r\n\r\nuntil perhaps they reach the bottom of the well.\r\n\r\nHow many times can you miss the mark\r\n\r\nwithout facing this isn’t your gift from God?\r\n\r\nWhy cry and try for what you can’t have –\r\n\r\nsalvation for others, not me?\r\n\r\nWe’re exempt for failure to trust\r\n\r\nand let go 100% like them who fit in.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nDoes God shrug and say,\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n<em>Let me know when you’re ready,</em>\r\n\r\n<em><span style=\"font-size: small;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri;\">when your will no longer works for you?</span></span></em>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nWhat if partial faith is the best we have,\r\n\r\nwith no trust in people who martyr those with less success?\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nDo they really think we’ll volunteer\r\n\r\nfor pity, slander, and being ignored?\r\n\r\nWhere do we go except back out\r\n\r\nwhere at least we can succeed at being professional failures?\r\n\r\nWe don’t see God’s promises coming true.\r\n\r\nWhat’s the use of longing for what you can’t have?\r\n\r\nWe crave, like addicts, to be winners like them.\r\n\r\nAnd those that do, continue to try – at least, many do –\r\n\r\nwhile some die inside or altogether, alone.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nGod, you said you made me unique and precious,\r\n\r\nbut I see defection in your design.\r\n\r\nI believe and don’t,\r\n\r\ntry hard and won’t let go of you,\r\n\r\nfor the alternative is my own personal hell.\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;\"> </span>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Is Partial Faith Enough For God?','','inherit','open','open','','582-revision-6','','','2011-10-18 09:19:27','2011-10-18 16:19:27','',582,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/582-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(647,1,'2011-10-18 09:26:20','2011-10-18 16:26:20','There are two opportunities to advertise on Provoketive: Events and Banner Advertising.\r\n<h3>Events Listings</h3>\r\nProvoketive lists conferences and events under the main heading of Events.  To advertise your event is a $25 dollar listing fee.  That\'s it.\r\n<h3>Banner Advertising</h3>\r\nProvoketive Magazine attracts educated adults with an interest in life, culture, justice, spirituality, and current events. Banner advertising runs for 1 month as is available on a space availability basis.  There are two positions in the magazine: front page and all sub-pages.  Sub-page ads run in one of four main categories: life, faith, justice, culture.\r\n<h4>Large Advertisements: 630x125</h4>\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/630-Ad-Sample.png\"><img title=\"630 Ad Sample\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/630-Ad-Sample.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"630\" height=\"125\" /></a>\r\n\r\nLarge Advertisement Front Page Top: 630x125 = $150\r\n\r\nLarge Advertisement Front Page Bottom: 630x125 = $125\r\n\r\nLarge Advertisement Sub Page: 630x125 = $100\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n<h4>Small Advertisements: 220x125</h4>\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/220-Sample-Ad.png\"><img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-641\" title=\"220 Sample Ad\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/220-Sample-Ad.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"220\" height=\"125\" /></a>\r\n\r\nSmall Advertisement Front Page Top: 220x125 = $75\r\n\r\nSmall Advertisement Front Page Middle: 220x125 = $60\r\n\r\nSmall Advertisement Sub Page: 220x125 = $25\r\n<h4></h4>\r\n<h4>Buying Ads</h4>\r\nTo purchase advertising, please contact using the form below.  Someone will contact you within one business day.\r\n\r\n[contact-form] [contact-field label=\"Name\" type=\"name\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Email\" type=\"email\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Ad Space You Want To Buy\" type=\"url\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Comment\" type=\"textarea\" required=\"true\" /] [/contact-form]\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Advertise on Provoketive','','inherit','open','open','','29-revision-6','','','2011-10-18 09:26:20','2011-10-18 16:26:20','',29,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/29-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(2545,1,'2011-11-23 12:31:54','2011-11-23 20:31:54',' ','','','publish','open','open','','2545','','','2012-01-19 11:08:28','2012-01-19 19:08:28','',9,'http://provoketive.com/?p=2545',13,'nav_menu_item','',0),(649,1,'2011-10-18 09:28:50','2011-10-18 16:28:50','There are two opportunities to advertise on Provoketive: Events and Banner Advertising.  All proceeds go towards creating this rich space of conversation and community.\r\n<h3>Events Listings</h3>\r\nProvoketive lists conferences and events under the main heading of Events.  To advertise your event is a $25 dollar listing fee.  That\'s it.\r\n<h3>Banner Advertising</h3>\r\nProvoketive Magazine attracts educated adults with an interest in life, culture, justice, spirituality, and current events. Banner advertising runs for 1 month as is available on a space availability basis.  There are two positions in the magazine: front page and all sub-pages.  Sub-page ads run in one of four main categories: life, faith, justice, culture.\r\n<h4>Large Advertisements: 630x125</h4>\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/630-Ad-Sample.png\"><img title=\"630 Ad Sample\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/630-Ad-Sample.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"630\" height=\"125\" /></a>\r\n\r\nLarge Advertisement Front Page Top: 630x125 = $150\r\n\r\nLarge Advertisement Front Page Bottom: 630x125 = $125\r\n\r\nLarge Advertisement Sub Page: 630x125 = $100\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n<h4>Small Advertisements: 220x125</h4>\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/220-Sample-Ad.png\"><img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-641\" title=\"220 Sample Ad\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/220-Sample-Ad.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"220\" height=\"125\" /></a>\r\n\r\nSmall Advertisement Front Page Top: 220x125 = $75\r\n\r\nSmall Advertisement Front Page Middle: 220x125 = $60\r\n\r\nSmall Advertisement Sub Page: 220x125 = $25\r\n<h4></h4>\r\n<h4>Buying Ads</h4>\r\nTo purchase advertising, please contact Jonathan using the form below.  Someone will contact you within one business day.\r\n\r\n[contact-form] [contact-field label=\"Name\" type=\"name\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Email\" type=\"email\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Ad Space You Want To Buy\" type=\"url\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Comment\" type=\"textarea\" required=\"true\" /] [/contact-form]\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Advertise on Provoketive','','inherit','open','open','','29-revision-7','','','2011-10-18 09:28:50','2011-10-18 16:28:50','',29,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/29-revision-7/',0,'revision','',0),(650,1,'2011-10-03 07:07:48','2011-10-03 14:07:48','','Newsletter','','inherit','open','open','','33-revision-2','','','2011-10-03 07:07:48','2011-10-03 14:07:48','',33,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/03/33-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(706,1,'2011-10-18 15:40:08','2011-10-18 22:40:08','','dalai_lama','','inherit','open','open','','dalai_lama','','','2011-10-18 15:40:08','2011-10-18 22:40:08','',705,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/dalai_lama.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(651,1,'2011-10-18 09:40:25','2011-10-18 16:40:25','<form action=\"http://www.graphicmail.com/RWCode/subscribe.asp?SiteID=60603&amp;SID=0\" method=\"post\" name=\"inputForm\"><input type=\"hidden\" name=\"SID\" value=\"0\" />\r\n<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"ReturnURL\" value=\"\" />\r\n<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"Resize\" value=\"1\" />\r\n<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"Mode\" value=\"update\" />\r\n<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"ResultMode\" value=\"\" />\r\n<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"HitID\" value=\"0\" />\r\n<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"OldEmail\" value=\"\" />\r\n<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"EmailChange\" value=\"0\" />\r\n<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"EmailID\" value=\"0\" />\r\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" align=\"center\">\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>\r\n<div>\r\n<div><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\">\r\n</span></div>\r\n</div>\r\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\">\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td colspan=\"2\" align=\"left\">\r\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"2\" cellpadding=\"0\">\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td align=\"right\" nowrap=\"nowrap\" width=\"10%\"><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\"><strong>Email   </strong></span></td>\r\n<td><input type=\"text\" name=\"Email\" value=\"\" size=\"40\" /></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td align=\"right\" nowrap=\"nowrap\"><strong><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\">First name    </span></strong></td>\r\n<td><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\"><input type=\"text\" name=\"Col1\" value=\"\" size=\"40\" /></span></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td align=\"right\" nowrap=\"nowrap\"><strong><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\">Last name    </span></strong></td>\r\n<td><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\"><input type=\"text\" name=\"Col2\" value=\"\" size=\"40\" /></span></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td colspan=\"2\" align=\"center\" nowrap=\"nowrap\"><input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" /></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n</tbody>\r\n</table>\r\n</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n</tbody>\r\n</table>\r\n<div><center>Please come back at any time to modify your profile.</center><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\"><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\">\r\n</span></span>\r\n<table cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" align=\"center\">\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td align=\"center\"><a style=\"text-decoration: none; color: #666666; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px;\" href=\"http://graphicmail.com/\">Email marketing by</a><strong> GraphicMail</strong></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n</tbody>\r\n</table>\r\n</div></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n</tbody>\r\n</table>\r\n</form>','Newsletter','','inherit','open','open','','33-revision-3','','','2011-10-18 09:40:25','2011-10-18 16:40:25','',33,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/33-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(705,1,'2011-10-18 15:47:53','2011-10-18 22:47:53','The Dalai Lama, when asked what surprised him most about humanity, answered \"Man. Because he sacrifices his health in order to make money.  Then he sacrifices money to recuperate his health.  And then he is so anxious about the future that he does not enjoy the present; the result being that he does not live in the present or the future; he lives as if he is never going to die, and then dies having never really lived.\"\r\n\r\nWhat do you think?','What Surprised The Dalai Lama','','publish','open','open','','what-surprised-the-dalai-lama','','','2011-10-18 15:47:53','2011-10-18 22:47:53','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=705',0,'post','',0),(652,1,'2011-10-18 09:58:47','2011-10-18 16:58:47','<strong>Your responsibility as a reader and a commenter.</strong>\n<ul>\n	<li>If you come looking for something in the writing and the author didn’t say it, It doesn’t mean that he/she  hasn’t said it.  It means that the author hasn’t said it in that post.  Each author\'s posts are conversations of thought intended to grapple with its meaning, not answer every question.  Look deeper that simply your first conclusion about something.</li>\n	<li>Take responsibility for your words as your comment.  Think before you write them and consider how they sound, not just what you are saying. Be gracious in your questions and comments.  We all have feelings.  Nobody hears what you say if you first make them feel like awful.</li>\n	<li>If what the author write makes you mad, FIRST ask why it makes you mad.  Chances are its not only what he/she said but that the author has come to a conclusion that is different than yours.  This often creates tension that is hard to deal with.  This is a place for each author to wrestle with different questions and conclusions.  But don’t get mad at the author for coming to this space.</li>\n	<li>If you don’t understand, ask clarifying questions that help you understand what each author is saying.</li>\n</ul>','Commenting Policy','','inherit','open','open','','74-autosave','','','2011-10-18 09:58:47','2011-10-18 16:58:47','',74,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/74-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(653,1,'2011-10-06 23:47:25','2011-10-07 06:47:25','<strong>Your responsibility as a reader and a commenter.</strong>\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>If you come looking for something in my writing and I don’t say it, It doesn’t mean that I haven’t said it.  It means that I haven’t said it in that post.  My posts are to express my thoughts and grapple with its meaning, not answer all your questions.  Look deeper that simply your first conclusion about something.</li>\r\n	<li>Take responsibility for your words as you comment.  Think before you write them and consider how they sound, not just what you are saying. Be gracious in your questions and comments.  We all have feelings.  Nobody hears what you say if you first make them feel like crap.</li>\r\n	<li>If what I write makes you mad, FIRST ask why it makes you mad.  Chances are its not only what I said but that I have come to a conclusion that is different than yours.  This often creates tension that is hard to deal with.  This is a place for me to expose my questions and conclusions.  But don’t get mad at me for coming to my blog.</li>\r\n	<li>If you don’t understand, ask clarifying questions that help you understand what I am saying.</li>\r\n</ul>','Commenting Policy','','inherit','open','open','','74-revision-3','','','2011-10-06 23:47:25','2011-10-07 06:47:25','',74,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/06/74-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(654,1,'2011-10-04 11:00:40','2011-10-04 18:00:40','','About Provoketive','','inherit','open','open','','34-revision-2','','','2011-10-04 11:00:40','2011-10-04 18:00:40','',34,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/04/34-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(655,1,'2011-10-30 08:35:23','2011-10-30 15:35:23','If you would like to support Provoketive Magazine, the simplest way to do that is to help spread the word.  Provoketive thrives on a rich social network of people engaged in conversation.  The simplest way to support us is:\n<ul>\n	<li>Invite your friends to join the conversation.</li>\n	<li><a title=\"Writing For Proketive\" href=\"http://provoketive.com/writing-for-proketive/\">Contribute posts</a>.</li>\n	<li>Add a banner on your blog.  See banner below.</li>\n	<li><a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/Provoketive\" target=\"_blank\">Like our Facebook page</a>.</li>\n	<li>Follow us on <a href=\"http://twitter.com/#!/provoketive\" target=\"_blank\">Twitter</a>.</li>\n</ul>\nBanner For Your Blog: Simply grab the image and link to our front page.\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Banner.png\"><img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-656\" title=\"Banner\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Banner.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"200\" height=\"200\" /></a>','Support Provoketive','','inherit','open','open','','27-autosave','','','2011-10-30 08:35:23','2011-10-30 15:35:23','',27,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/27-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(656,1,'2011-10-18 09:54:34','2011-10-18 16:54:34','','Banner','','inherit','open','open','','banner','','','2011-10-18 09:54:34','2011-10-18 16:54:34','',27,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Banner.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(657,1,'2011-10-04 14:25:34','2011-10-04 21:25:34','','Support Provoketive','','inherit','open','open','','27-revision-3','','','2011-10-04 14:25:34','2011-10-04 21:25:34','',27,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/04/27-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(658,1,'2011-10-18 09:54:48','2011-10-18 16:54:48','If you would like to support Provoketive Magazine, the simplest way to do that is to help spread the word.  Provoketive thrives on a rich social network of people engaged in conversation.  The simplest way to support us is:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Tell your friends come join the conversation.</li>\r\n	<li><a title=\"Writing For Proketive\" href=\"http://provoketive.com/writing-for-proketive/\">Contribute posts</a>.</li>\r\n	<li>Add a banner on your blog.  See banner below.</li>\r\n	<li><a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/Provoketive\" target=\"_blank\">Like our Facebook page</a>.</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nBanner For Your Blog: Simply grab the image and link to our front page.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Banner.png\"><img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-656\" title=\"Banner\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Banner.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"200\" height=\"200\" /></a>','Support Provoketive','','inherit','open','open','','27-revision-4','','','2011-10-18 09:54:48','2011-10-18 16:54:48','',27,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/27-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(659,1,'2011-10-18 09:55:05','2011-10-18 16:55:05','If you would like to support Provoketive Magazine, the simplest way to do that is to help spread the word.  Provoketive thrives on a rich social network of people engaged in conversation.  The simplest way to support us is:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Invite your friends to join the conversation.</li>\r\n	<li><a title=\"Writing For Proketive\" href=\"http://provoketive.com/writing-for-proketive/\">Contribute posts</a>.</li>\r\n	<li>Add a banner on your blog.  See banner below.</li>\r\n	<li><a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/Provoketive\" target=\"_blank\">Like our Facebook page</a>.</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nBanner For Your Blog: Simply grab the image and link to our front page.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Banner.png\"><img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-656\" title=\"Banner\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Banner.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"200\" height=\"200\" /></a>','Support Provoketive','','inherit','open','open','','27-revision-5','','','2011-10-18 09:55:05','2011-10-18 16:55:05','',27,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/27-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(660,1,'2011-10-18 09:46:43','2011-10-18 16:46:43','<strong>Your responsibility as a reader and a commenter.</strong>\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>If you come looking for something in my writing and the author didn’t say it, It doesn’t mean that he/she  hasn’t said it.  It means that the author hasn’t said it in that post.  Each author\'s posts are conversations of thought intended to grapple with its meaning, not answer every question.  Look deeper that simply your first conclusion about something.</li>\r\n	<li>Take responsibility for your words as your comment.  Think before you write them and consider how they sound, not just what you are saying. Be gracious in your questions and comments.  We all have feelings.  Nobody hears what you say if you first make them feel like awful.</li>\r\n	<li>If what the author write makes you mad, FIRST ask why it makes you mad.  Chances are its not only what he/she said but that the author has come to a conclusion that is different than yours.  This often creates tension that is hard to deal with.  This is a place for each author to wrestle with different questions and conclusions.  But don’t get mad at the author for coming to this space.</li>\r\n	<li>If you don’t understand, ask clarifying questions that help you understand what each author is saying.</li>\r\n</ul>','Commenting Policy','','inherit','open','open','','74-revision-4','','','2011-10-18 09:46:43','2011-10-18 16:46:43','',74,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/74-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(661,1,'2011-10-18 10:05:32','2011-10-18 17:05:32','','Not_Alone_630','','inherit','open','open','','not_alone_630','','','2011-10-18 10:05:32','2011-10-18 17:05:32','',0,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Not_Alone_630.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(662,1,'2011-10-16 18:40:58','2011-10-17 01:40:58','In response to Occupy Wall Street, there is a photo going around on social media sites.  It\'s a college student holding a sign which reads,\r\n<blockquote><a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Not-the-99.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-578\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Not-the-99-224x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"224\" height=\"300\" /></a>I am a college senior about to graduate debt free.  I pay for all of my living expenses by working 30+ hrs a week making barely above minimum wage.  I chose a moderately priced in-state public university &amp; started saving $ for school at age 17.  I got decent grades in high school &amp; received 2 scholarships which cover 90% of my tuition.  I currently have a 3.8 GPA.  I live comfortably in a cheap apt., knowing I can\'t have everything I want.  I don\'t eat out every day, or even once a month.  I have no credit card, new car, iPad or smart phone--and I\'m perfectly OK with that.  If I did have debt, I would not blame Wall St. or the government for my own bad decisions.  I live below my means to continue saving for the future.  I expect nothing to be handed to me, and will continue to work my @$$ off for everything I have.  That\'s how it\'s supposed to work.  I am NOT the 99%, and whether or not you are is YOUR decision.</blockquote>\r\nI could point out the obvious flaws in this piece.  For example, even if this college student is working hard and going to school, he or she is, in fact, part of the 99% of Americans who are not at the top of the financial food chain.  This person appears to have put far more energy into writing what he or she thinks is a witty reply than into finding out what \"the 99%\" and \"the 1%\" mean in context.\r\n\r\nI could argue that not everyone qualifies for scholarships, and not everyone\'s scholarships pay nearly all tuition expenses.  Or that 30 hours a week at minimum wage is fine for a single college student, but not for a family of four.  Or that while a 3.8 GPA is impressive, not everyone is that smart.  Or that lots of people don\'t have new cars, fancy apartments, or iPads, even when receiving government benefits.  Or that being poor is not always a \"choice.\"\r\n\r\nBut in the end, that doesn\'t really matter.  People who believe poor people ended up that way because of laziness will continue to think that way regardless of the arguments made against that line of thinking.\r\n\r\nInstead, I will appeal to Jesus\' own words.  Jesus tells a parable about separating sheep and goats.  To sum up, Jesus tells the sheep that they fed, clothed, and visited him when he was hungry, naked, sick and in prison.  The sheep, surprised, ask when they did these things.  Jesus tells them when they did it for \"the least of these,\" they were really doing it to him.  Similarly, the goats get an earful of what they failed to do.\r\n\r\nWhat I want to point out here is that at no point did Jesus ever say, \"You fed the hungry people you deemed worthy.\"  We are not told that we may, under any circumstances, evaluate whether someone is deserving of help.  We are not given the freedom to decide which people we should feed, clothe, and visit.  We don\'t get to decide whether someone is in need because of his or her own actions or because of external forces.  There is no form to fill out wherein a person has to prove he or she is poor for the \"right\" reasons.  And in no way, shape, or form are we to hold ourselves superior to anyone else by virtue of being \"not poor.\"\r\n\r\nIt is our job to reach out to people, not just as followers of Jesus, not just as churches, and not even as the Church collectively.  We, as an entire nation, are responsible for our citizens.  If even one child goes to bed hungry tonight, we are all accountable.  We live in a country of plenty.  There is absolutely no reason that any person should not have a roof over his or her head, clothes to wear, and food to eat.\r\n\r\nCan we look ourselves in the mirror each night and say, \"Today I made someone\'s life better\"?','Poor By Choice','','inherit','open','open','','535-revision-4','','','2011-10-16 18:40:58','2011-10-17 01:40:58','',535,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/16/535-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(663,1,'2011-10-18 10:07:01','2011-10-18 17:07:01','In response to Occupy Wall Street, there is a photo going around on social media sites.  It\'s a college student holding a sign which reads,\r\n<blockquote><a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Not-the-99.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-578\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Not-the-99-224x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"224\" height=\"300\" /></a>I am a college senior about to graduate debt free.  I pay for all of my living expenses by working 30+ hrs a week making barely above minimum wage.  I chose a moderately priced in-state public university &amp; started saving $ for school at age 17.  I got decent grades in high school &amp; received 2 scholarships which cover 90% of my tuition.  I currently have a 3.8 GPA.  I live comfortably in a cheap apt., knowing I can\'t have everything I want.  I don\'t eat out every day, or even once a month.  I have no credit card, new car, iPad or smart phone--and I\'m perfectly OK with that.  If I did have debt, I would not blame Wall St. or the government for my own bad decisions.  I live below my means to continue saving for the future.  I expect nothing to be handed to me, and will continue to work my @$$ off for everything I have.  That\'s how it\'s supposed to work.  I am NOT the 99%, and whether or not you are is YOUR decision.</blockquote>\r\nI could point out the obvious flaws in this piece.  For example, even if this college student is working hard and going to school, he or she is, in fact, part of the 99% of Americans who are not at the top of the financial food chain.  This person appears to have put far more energy into writing what he or she thinks is a witty reply than into finding out what \"the 99%\" and \"the 1%\" mean in context.\r\n\r\nI could argue that not everyone qualifies for scholarships, and not everyone\'s scholarships pay nearly all tuition expenses.  Or that 30 hours a week at minimum wage is fine for a single college student, but not for a family of four.  Or that while a 3.8 GPA is impressive, not everyone is that smart.  Or that lots of people don\'t have new cars, fancy apartments, or iPads, even when receiving government benefits.  Or that being poor is not always a \"choice.\"\r\n\r\nBut in the end, that doesn\'t really matter.  People who believe poor people ended up that way because of laziness will continue to think that way regardless of the arguments made against that line of thinking.\r\n\r\nInstead, I will appeal to Jesus\' own words.  Jesus tells a parable about separating sheep and goats.  To sum up, Jesus tells the sheep that they fed, clothed, and visited him when he was hungry, naked, sick and in prison.  The sheep, surprised, ask when they did these things.  Jesus tells them when they did it for \"the least of these,\" they were really doing it to him.  Similarly, the goats get an earful of what they failed to do.\r\n\r\nWhat I want to point out here is that at no point did Jesus ever say, \"You fed the hungry people you deemed worthy.\"  We are not told that we may, under any circumstances, evaluate whether someone is deserving of help.  We are not given the freedom to decide which people we should feed, clothe, and visit.  We don\'t get to decide whether someone is in need because of his or her own actions or because of external forces.  There is no form to fill out wherein a person has to prove he or she is poor for the \"right\" reasons.  And in no way, shape, or form are we to hold ourselves superior to anyone else by virtue of being \"not poor.\"\r\n\r\nIt is our job to reach out to people, not just as followers of Jesus, not just as churches, and not even as the Church collectively.  We, as an entire nation, are responsible for our citizens.  If even one child goes to bed hungry tonight, we are all accountable.  We live in a country of plenty.  There is absolutely no reason that any person should not have a roof over his or her head, clothes to wear, and food to eat.\r\n\r\nCan we look ourselves in the mirror each night and say, \"Today I made someone\'s life better\"?','Poor By Choice','','inherit','open','open','','535-revision-5','','','2011-10-18 10:07:01','2011-10-18 17:07:01','',535,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/535-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(664,1,'2011-10-15 01:20:16','2011-10-15 08:20:16','\"How do you know what God\'s will is?\"\r\n\r\nA tall, Egyptian guy with black curly hair and eyes the color of raisins asked me this question while we were walking through the streets of downtown Amsterdam with about six other people. Our group, a conglomerate of a small group visiting from the United States and a team that led a church in the heart of the city, was headed to a pub for a late dinner.\r\n\r\nThis particular evening in late May was blissful. All of Amsterdam was dark, the canals lit by tiny white lights lining the brick. The streets were emptier than earlier in the day but were by no means lonelier. I was light on my feet and I felt like I finally had some answers.\r\n\r\nJust before leaving for Amsterdam I had to make a couple of decisions about the direction of my education and career. Both situations orchestrated themselves out perfectly right in front of me, so I answered with what I knew.\r\n\r\n\"Well, for me at least, it\'s through the little things. A conversation, a song, books that I read... They all point to something. It seems to keep coming up.\"\r\n\r\nThis method has been true in most of my life. Someone accidentally speaks straight into my situation without having any knowledge of what I’m going through, the book I’m reading just happens to be covering the topic I’m agonizing over, or a sermon is taught on just the right Sunday. When I collect enough of these mini-experiences I usually take it as a sign and keep moving.\r\n\r\nJoel Rieves describes this a post titled \"<a href=\"http://www.butnotyet.com/god-told-you-what/\" target=\"_blank\">God Told You What?</a>\" on <a href=\"http://www.butnotyet.com\" target=\"_blank\">his blog</a>:\r\n<blockquote>\"It’s not even a voice at all, to begin with. It will start as an idea or an urge that just won’t go away.\"</blockquote>\r\nWith another big decision on my horizon and many years between me and that night in Amsterdam, I’ve been wondering how much of these mini-experiences and messages are actually divine and how much of them are just my mind. Are these “feelings” simply my brain running reports on the upcoming decision? Are they simply of product of all the little decisions and choices I make everyday towards that slowly over time move me in the right direction? Are all these tiny things orchestrated on purpose?\r\n\r\nMilan Kundera refers to this situation as “the birds of fortuity”. In his book <em><a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Unbearable-Lightness-Being-Milan-Kundera/dp/0060932139/ref=cm_cmu_pg__header\" target=\"_blank\">The Unbearable Lightness of Being</a>,</em> the main character, Tereza, mistakenly takes a set of chance happenings as a sign and gets herself into something that originally had no significance or orchestration whatsoever outside of her favorite Beethoven song being on the radio at that particular moment.\r\n<blockquote>\"How was it possible that at the very moment she was taking an order of cognac to a stranger she found attractive, at that very moment she heard Beethoven? Necessity knows no magic formulae--they are all left to chance. If love is to be unforgettable, fortuities must immediately start fluttering down to it like birds to Francis of Assisi\'s shoulders.\"</blockquote>\r\nSome people speak of God’s will being a very clear voice in their minds. The only time I have ever encountered that personally was after seeing five of my close friends all joining or starting bands. That night I went into the bathroom to wash my hands before dinner, and as I raised my eyes up from the sink to the mirror I heard: “You don’t need music. I gave you your art.” That was it. No long drawn out answer, no waterfall voices, and no “laying it on my heart” for weeks on end. All it took was nine simple words.\r\n\r\nHow do you personally decipher God’s will? Do coincidences that seem to fall into place guide you along? Do you wait to hear a voice? Do you go with your gut or intuition? Do you pray every night and wait for your heart to be pregnant with a burden towards one side or the other? Once you get past the self-doubt (“Am I making this up?”), how do you navigate this kind of stuff?\r\n\r\nOn one hand I’d really love to believe that God is out there someplace in space just pulling all the tiny individual strings to make me hear the right words in conversation and hear the right song on shuffle on my MP3 player to push me onward. On the other hand, I kind of like the idea that while He is present, He also might not be running each and every minute thing that happens and that there is a natural order to the world that maintains itself. Maybe it’s divine, or maybe it’s just Beethoven playing at the right moment. I’m not sure I know just yet.','God’s Will, Coincidence &amp; Beethoven','','inherit','open','open','','541-revision-26','','','2011-10-15 01:20:16','2011-10-15 08:20:16','',541,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/15/541-revision-26/',0,'revision','',0),(1148,20,'2011-11-11 08:00:40','2011-11-11 16:00:40','I try to be conscious of what I buy and what I eat, and to take an interest in where things are made, by who, for how much, and so on.  And yet, no matter how well I manage to do this, I remain a consumer.  I might purchase fair trade coffee and chocolate, but I’m still addicted to coffee and chocolate.  My wife tries to shop only for clothes made in the U.S., but she still really likes to shop.   So I started wondering how much of this is just human, and how much of it is culturally constructed.\r\n\r\nDespite the fact that many Christians themselves get caught up in this pattern of behavior, there seems to at least be some level of awareness in the church about the problem.  This is a good thing.  Less understood though is the extent to which society is able to increasingly produce in us an insatiable desire for consumption in the first place.  You also hear the word materialism, but this could be a misnomer.  Material-ism implies the absolutization of the material, when in fact the lie we are fed is that the material offers something else: happiness, fulfillment... a certain image or experience.In their genuine intent to encourage counter-culturalism, we might hear pastors talk about the innate human drive to always want more.  But how much of this is rooted in a universal anthropology vs. just a modern Western phenomenon now gone viral?  I mean, people aren\'t just born with preferences for television sets.  Our preferences typically  emerge from a context of social relations.\r\n\r\nOf course there is a difference between our basic needs and deepest desires.  Theological anthropology has said that human beings live with a kind of openness directed toward possibility in the world, always becoming and searching.  Some people say there is a \"God-shaped hole\" in each us - a void.  This too can be a good a thing.  But this desire can be distorted.  It can be harnessed by market forces in such a way as to induce complacency in our individualism and trivialize any concern about our unsustainable standard of living.\r\n\r\nEven more troubling, this desire is very difficult to control.  Theologian <a title=\"Joerg Rieger homepage\" href=\"http://www.joergrieger.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Joerg Rieger</a> argues that in today\'s world the drive to consume is frequently propelled by economic mechanisms and reinforced by the advertising industry.  The deceit of this system is increasingly taken for granted.  Obviously recognizing this, one of my former seminary professors Roger Olson recently wrote a <a title=\"Can a Christian Work in the Marketing Field?\" href=\"www.patheos.com/blogs/rogereolson/2011/10/can-a-christian-work-in-the-marketing-field/\" target=\"_blank\">blog post</a> asking whether Christians should even work in marketing at all!  Rieger further contends that economic and religious desires often parallel each other.  This is illustrated by the way we tend to project our desires and ideals from the physical world onto the divine and thus replace the transcendent God with an idol.  If desire is shaped by the production of wealth in a given society, this process can have a subconscious effect on people’s deepest convictions and ultimate values.  This means that the way culture teaches us to view wealth has a tremendous impact on the kind of people we become - not to even mention the potential social costs that can be incurred on society\'s most vulnerable citizens as a result.\r\n\r\nAs communities that are supposed to be convicting, healing and nurturing us on the path to holiness, churches have a vital part to play in resisting co-optation by the marketplace.  Sadly it’s not uncommon, however, for Christian congregations to become complicit in the cycle of consuming and selling as well, even if only in very subtle ways.  To a degree this might be unavoidable, but it’s imperative for us to be sensitized and attentive to how we succumb to various addictive, superimposed desires.  I’m interested in how the church can be a place that enables Christians to subvert the status quo in this regard.  I know there are many tangible ways to do this, but I’m curious as to what others have seen and discovered about how our local practice can transcend systems that resist and suppress change.\r\n\r\nSpeaking of which, I really liked what David Fitch had to say recently <a title=\"Why branding is the ultimate anti-missional act\" href=\"http://www.reclaimingthemission.com/the-mars-hill-seattle-%E2%80%9Ccease-and-desist%E2%80%9D-letter-why-branding-is-the-ultimate-anti-missional-act/\" target=\"_blank\">in a post he made</a> about branding as the ultimate anti-missional act.  Seems very related to this struggle.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','That to Which Your Heart Clings: Diagnosing Consumerism   ','','publish','open','open','','that-to-which-your-heart-clings-diagnosing-consumerism','','\nhttp://www.reclaimingthemission.com/the-mars-hill-seattle-%E2%80%9Ccease-and-desist%E2%80%9D-letter-why-branding-is-the-ultimate-anti-missional-act/','2011-11-10 09:04:22','2011-11-10 17:04:22','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=1148',0,'post','',2),(669,1,'2011-10-18 10:49:18','2011-10-18 17:49:18','','Writer\'s A-E','','publish','open','open','','writers-a-h','','','2012-12-18 12:55:03','2012-12-18 20:55:03','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=669',8,'nav_menu_item','',0),(670,1,'2011-10-18 10:49:19','2011-10-18 17:49:19','','Writer\'s I-P','','publish','open','open','','writers-i-p','','','2012-12-18 12:55:05','2012-12-18 20:55:05','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=670',32,'nav_menu_item','',0),(671,1,'2011-10-18 10:49:19','2011-10-18 17:49:19','','Writer\'s Q-Z','','publish','open','open','','writers-q-z','','','2012-12-18 12:55:07','2012-12-18 20:55:07','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=671',50,'nav_menu_item','',0),(672,1,'2011-10-18 10:57:30','2011-10-18 17:57:30','','bird_prayer','','inherit','open','open','','bird_prayer','','','2011-10-18 10:57:30','2011-10-18 17:57:30','',582,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/bird_prayer.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(674,34,'2011-10-18 11:35:53','2011-10-18 18:35:53','A few years ago, Jose Saramago, who won a Nobel Peace Prize for literature, said this:\n<blockquote>The Bible is a manual of bad morals [which] has a powerful influence on our culture and even our way of life. Without the Bible, we would be different and probably better people.</blockquote>\nHe want on to describe the Bible as \"a catalog of cruelty and of what\'s worst in human nature.\" Though I am a life-long follower of Jesus, there are many days when I think Jose may be right.\n<h2>If We Didn\'t Have the Bible</h2>\nIf we didn’t have the Bible, I wouldn’t have to try to reconcile the nightly news about rape, child molestation, earthquakes killing thousands, and war devastating entire countries with the Scriptural promise that God cares for us more than the birds of the air and flowers of the field.\n\nIf we didn’t have the Bible, I wouldn’t have to try to question, along with the Psalmist, why wicked people get rich and stay healthy, while God’s servants lose their homes, their children, their jobs, and their lives.\n\nIf we didn’t have the Bible, there might be fewer arguments about homosexuality, hell, and how to get to heaven. Sure, some of us still would argue, because we all want to be right. But if we didn’t have Bible verses to throw at each other, most of us would probably spend less time arguing and more time loving.\n\nIf we didn’t have the Bible, maybe there would be fewer sermons and Bible studies and more service of others and caring for one another.\n\nPeople say we need the Bible to get our questions answered, solve our problems in life, and provide direction on how to live. I just don\'t see that the Bible does this very well. It seems to create more questions and problems than it solves. It generates arguments, provides justification for war, and helps us condemn and hate others who do not believe or behave like us.\n\nYes, sometimes I think that life would be better without the Bible.\n<h2>I\'m Glad We Have the Bible</h2>\nBut then, if I didn’t have the Bible, I might know about Jesus. It is he that keeps me returning to Scripture. It is he who provides the lens through which I view life. It is he who shows me what love for others really looks like, and how service can be done in a way that both dignifies and provides help to others.\n\nAnd despite my discomfort with a lot of what is said in Scripture, and especially with the ways Scripture is sometimes used, Scripture seems to have been a source of comfort and guidance for Jesus. This tells me that there must be a way to accept Scripture, but still  live and love like Jesus, rather than like many who claim to be his followers.\n\nSo although I sometimes think life would be better without the Bible, what I probably mean is that life would be better without the way some people use the Bible. Maybe if I can learn to read the Bible like Jesus, as an inspiration for love, mercy, and forgiveness, rather than as a way to justify hate and war, I can once again be thankful for the Bible.','Better without the Bible','','inherit','open','open','','440-autosave','','','2011-10-18 11:35:53','2011-10-18 18:35:53','',440,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/440-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(675,34,'2011-10-18 11:50:47','2011-10-18 18:50:47','','800px-La_Bible,_Notre-Dame_du_Taur,_septembre_2011','By PierreSelim (Own work) [CC-BY-3.0 (www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons','inherit','open','open','','800px-la_bible_notre-dame_du_taur_septembre_2011','','','2011-10-18 11:50:47','2011-10-18 18:50:47','',440,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/800px-La_Bible_Notre-Dame_du_Taur_septembre_2011.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(676,34,'2011-10-18 07:54:07','2011-10-18 14:54:07','A few years ago, Jose Saramago, who won a Nobel Peace Prize for literature, said this:\r\n<blockquote>The Bible is a manual of bad morals [which] has a powerful influence on our culture and even our way of life. Without the Bible, we would be different and probably better people.</blockquote>\r\nHe want on to describe the Bible as \"a catalog of cruelty and of what\'s worst in human nature.\" Though I am a life-long follower of Jesus, there are many days when I think Jose may be right.\r\n<h2>If We Didn\'t Have the Bible</h2>\r\nIf we didn’t have the Bible, I wouldn’t have to try to reconcile the nightly news about rape, child molestation, earthquakes killing thousands, and war devastating entire countries with the Scriptural promise that God cares for us more than the birds of the air and flowers of the field.\r\n\r\nIf we didn’t have the Bible, I wouldn’t have to try to question, along with the Psalmist, why wicked people get rich and stay healthy, while God’s servants lose their homes, their children, their jobs, and their lives.\r\n\r\nIf we didn’t have the Bible, there might be fewer arguments about homosexuality, hell, and how to get to heaven. Sure, some of us still would argue, because we all want to be right. But if we didn’t have Bible verses to throw at each other, most of us would probably spend less time arguing and more time loving.\r\n\r\nIf we didn’t have the Bible, maybe there would be fewer sermons and Bible studies and more service of others and caring for one another.\r\n\r\nPeople say we need the Bible to get our questions answered, solve our problems in life, and provide direction on how to live. I just don\'t see that the Bible does this very well. It seems to create more questions and problems than it solves. It generates arguments, provides justification for war, and helps us condemn and hate others who do not believe or behave like us.\r\n\r\nYes, sometimes I think that life would be better without the Bible.\r\n<h2>I\'m Glad We Have the Bible</h2>\r\nBut then, if I didn’t have the Bible, I might know about Jesus. It is he that keeps me returning to Scripture. It is he who provides the lens through which I view life. It is he who shows me what love for others really looks like, and how service can be done in a way that both dignifies and provides help to others.\r\n\r\nAnd despite my discomfort with a lot of what is said in Scripture, and especially with the ways Scripture is sometimes used, Scripture seems to have been a source of comfort and guidance for Jesus. This tells me that there must be a way to accept Scripture, but still  live and love like Jesus, rather than like many who claim to be his followers.\r\n\r\nSo although I sometimes think life would be better without the Bible, what I probably mean is that life would be better without the way some people use the Bible. Maybe if I can learn to read the Bible like Jesus, as an inspiration for love, mercy, and forgiveness, rather than as a way to justify hate and war, I can once again be thankful for the Bible.','Better without the Bible','','inherit','open','open','','440-revision-4','','','2011-10-18 07:54:07','2011-10-18 14:54:07','',440,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/440-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(677,1,'2011-10-15 11:11:10','2011-10-15 18:11:10','Now the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread were just two days away, and the Pharisees — the chief priests and teachers of the law were trying to figure out how to arrest Jesus and kill him.  They decided to wait until after the celebrations for fear that others would riot against the established church.\r\n\r\nSo they sent spies to watch the heretic in action in order to gather some hard evidence to justify the death penalty.  Flash forward a few days to Bethany.  Jesus is reclining in the main living area of a house owned by a man named Simon who happens to be a leper.  His disciples are with him and so are the spies.\r\n\r\nSuddenly a beautiful and distraught woman came into the room holding an alabaster jar in her arms.  As her eyes wildly searched each face, Jesus realized who she was.  <strong>The jar contained perfume made of pure nard and cost the woman a year’s wages.</strong>\r\n\r\nLocking eyes onto him she smiled, bent down low and broke the jar, and began to move towards Jesus so that she might anoint him with the contents.  However, knowing her intentions, Jesus quickly moved to the side avoiding the woman with her expensive perfume as he motioned to his disciple Peter with a single glance.\r\n\r\nThe perfume spilled recklessly on the floor near him and began to expand rapidly into a pool of aromatic liquid onto the surface of the floor as the woman fell to one knee <strong>astonished that Jesus would seem so repulsed by her doting gesture.  </strong>Disgusted with the woman’s sin Jesus turned to his Disciples and the Pharisees in attendance and said “She should not have wasted that expensive perfume. It could have been sold and used to help the poor, the widows and orphans. What is <em>she</em> doing with it anyway?”\r\n\r\nIn the alleyway Peter held the woman roughly by the arm and without looking at her said “what did you think you were doing?  You know that your <strong>chosen lifestyle is not the kind that the Master agrees with.  Why, He can not even look at or be in the same room with you.  </strong>Once you turn from your evil ways and choose to live either a life of celibacy as an unworthy woman, or just marry a man like the rest of the women here, you can come back and the Rabbi will accept your gifts.  Until then, stay away. The Master will have nothing more to do with you.”\r\n\r\nThrough heaving sobs the woman looked up at Peter and managed to say, \"B-but Simon is a Leper...\"\r\n\r\n\"...At least he\'s a man.  But you...   What are you anyway?\" Peter said as he shoved the young woman towards the street harshly causing her to trip and fall sharply onto the ground, broken, and even more distraught then before.  Peter smiled smugly, then went back inside.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/woman_9.jpg\"><img class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-571\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/woman_9-300x248.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"248\" /></a>\r\n\r\nWith this last round of rejection in mind, the young girl lay silently on her side in the dirt, her knees drawn to her chest, both hands clasped tightly over her ears, tears streaming down the side of her face while sounds of guffawing laughter echoed loudly into the alleyway from Simon’s house.  Jesus had finally obtained acceptance by his peers -- the Pharisees, for making clear his stance against at least one of the established religious rejects of the day. <strong>There would no longer be a need for his death. </strong>\r\n\r\n[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAHq9byLyyI&amp;w=420&amp;h=315]','The Alabaster Jar - A Parable','','inherit','open','open','','55-revision-25','','','2011-10-15 11:11:10','2011-10-15 18:11:10','',55,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/15/55-revision-25/',0,'revision','',0),(870,4,'2011-10-21 10:38:29','2011-10-21 17:38:29','Now the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread were just two days away, and the Pharisees — the chief priests and teachers of the law were trying to figure out how to arrest Jesus and kill him.  They decided to wait until after the celebrations for fear that others would riot against the established church.\r\n\r\nSo they sent spies to watch the heretic in action in order to gather some hard evidence to justify the death penalty.  Flash forward a few days to Bethany.  Jesus is reclining in the main living area of a house owned by a man named Simon who happens to be a leper.  His disciples are with him and so are the spies.\r\n\r\nSuddenly a beautiful and distraught woman came into the room holding an alabaster jar in her arms.  As her eyes wildly searched each face, Jesus realized who she was.  <strong>The jar contained perfume made of pure nard and cost the woman a year’s wages.</strong>\r\n\r\nLocking eyes onto him she smiled, bent down low and broke the jar, and began to move towards Jesus so that she might anoint him with the contents.  However, knowing her intentions, Jesus quickly moved to the side avoiding the woman with her expensive perfume as he motioned to his disciple Peter with a single glance.\r\n\r\nThe perfume spilled recklessly on the floor near him and began to expand rapidly into a pool of aromatic liquid onto the surface of the floor as the woman fell to one knee <strong>astonished that Jesus would seem so repulsed by her doting gesture.  </strong>Disgusted with the woman’s sin Jesus turned to his Disciples and the Pharisees in attendance and said “She should not have wasted that expensive perfume. It could have been sold and used to help the poor, the widows and orphans. What is <em>she</em> doing with it anyway?”\r\n\r\nIn the alleyway Peter held the woman roughly by the arm and without looking at her said “what did you think you were doing?  You know that your <strong>chosen lifestyle is not the kind that the Master agrees with.  Why, He can not even look at or be in the same room with you.  </strong>Once you turn from your evil ways and choose to live either a life of celibacy as an unworthy woman, or just marry a man like the rest of the women here, you can come back and the Rabbi will accept your gifts.  Until then, stay away. The Master will have nothing more to do with you.”\r\n\r\nThrough heaving sobs the woman looked up at Peter and managed to say, \"B-but Simon is a Leper...\"\r\n\r\n\"...At least he\'s a man.  But you...   What are you anyway?\" Peter said as he shoved the young woman towards the street harshly causing her to trip and fall sharply onto the ground, broken, and even more distraught then before.  Peter smiled smugly, then went back inside.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/woman_9.jpg\"><img class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-571\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/woman_9-300x248.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"248\" /></a>\r\n\r\nWith this last round of rejection in mind, the young girl lay silently on her side in the dirt, her knees drawn to her chest, both hands clasped tightly over her ears, tears streaming down the side of her face while sounds of guffawing laughter echoed loudly into the alleyway from Simon’s house.  Jesus had finally obtained acceptance by his peers -- the Pharisees, for making clear his stance against at least one of the established religious rejects of the day. <strong>There would no longer be a need for his death. </strong>\r\n','The Alabaster Jar - A Parable','','inherit','open','open','','55-revision-30','','','2011-10-21 10:38:29','2011-10-21 17:38:29','',55,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/21/55-revision-30/',0,'revision','',0),(678,1,'2011-10-18 12:00:36','2011-10-18 19:00:36','Now the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread were just two days away, and the Pharisees — the chief priests and teachers of the law were trying to figure out how to arrest Jesus and kill him.  They decided to wait until after the celebrations for fear that others would riot against the established church.\r\n\r\nSo they sent spies to watch the heretic in action in order to gather some hard evidence to justify the death penalty.  Flash forward a few days to Bethany.  Jesus is reclining in the main living area of a house owned by a man named Simon who happens to be a leper.  His disciples are with him and so are the spies.\r\n\r\nSuddenly a beautiful and distraught woman came into the room holding an alabaster jar in her arms.  As her eyes wildly searched each face, Jesus realized who she was.  <strong>The jar contained perfume made of pure nard and cost the woman a year’s wages.</strong>\r\n\r\nLocking eyes onto him she smiled, bent down low and broke the jar, and began to move towards Jesus so that she might anoint him with the contents.  However, knowing her intentions, Jesus quickly moved to the side avoiding the woman with her expensive perfume as he motioned to his disciple Peter with a single glance.\r\n\r\nThe perfume spilled recklessly on the floor near him and began to expand rapidly into a pool of aromatic liquid onto the surface of the floor as the woman fell to one knee <strong>astonished that Jesus would seem so repulsed by her doting gesture.  </strong>Disgusted with the woman’s sin Jesus turned to his Disciples and the Pharisees in attendance and said “She should not have wasted that expensive perfume. It could have been sold and used to help the poor, the widows and orphans. What is <em>she</em> doing with it anyway?”\r\n\r\nIn the alleyway Peter held the woman roughly by the arm and without looking at her said “what did you think you were doing?  You know that your <strong>chosen lifestyle is not the kind that the Master agrees with.  Why, He can not even look at or be in the same room with you.  </strong>Once you turn from your evil ways and choose to live either a life of celibacy as an unworthy woman, or just marry a man like the rest of the women here, you can come back and the Rabbi will accept your gifts.  Until then, stay away. The Master will have nothing more to do with you.”\r\n\r\nThrough heaving sobs the woman looked up at Peter and managed to say, \"B-but Simon is a Leper...\"\r\n\r\n\"...At least he\'s a man.  But you...   What are you anyway?\" Peter said as he shoved the young woman towards the street harshly causing her to trip and fall sharply onto the ground, broken, and even more distraught then before.  Peter smiled smugly, then went back inside.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/woman_9.jpg\"><img class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-571\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/woman_9-300x248.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"248\" /></a>\r\n\r\nWith this last round of rejection in mind, the young girl lay silently on her side in the dirt, her knees drawn to her chest, both hands clasped tightly over her ears, tears streaming down the side of her face while sounds of guffawing laughter echoed loudly into the alleyway from Simon’s house.  Jesus had finally obtained acceptance by his peers -- the Pharisees, for making clear his stance against at least one of the established religious rejects of the day. <strong>There would no longer be a need for his death. </strong>\r\n\r\n[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAHq9byLyyI&amp;w=420&amp;h=315]','The Alabaster Jar - A Parable','','inherit','open','open','','55-revision-26','','','2011-10-18 12:00:36','2011-10-18 19:00:36','',55,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/55-revision-26/',0,'revision','',0),(679,1,'2011-10-18 13:46:47','2011-10-18 20:46:47','All images on <strong>Provoketive.com</strong> are readily available in various places on the Internet and believed to be in public domain. Images posted are believed to be posted within our rights according to the U.S. Copyright Fair Use Act (title 17, U.S. Code.)\r\n\r\n<strong>Claims of Infringement</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you believe that any content appearing on <strong>Provoketive.com</strong> infringes on your copyright, please let us know. E-Mail <a href=\"mailto:admin@provoketive.com\">admin@provoketive.com</a>\r\nfollowing information to us and the infringing material will be removed as soon as possible.\r\n\r\n(a) your name, address, telephone number, and e-mail address;\r\n(b) a description of the copyrighted work that you claim has been infringed;\r\n(c) the exact URL or a description of each place where alleged infringing material is located;\r\n(d) a statement by you that you have a good faith belief that the disputed use has not been authorized by you, your agent, or the law;\r\n(e) your electronic or physical signature or the electronic or physical signature of the person authorized to act on your behalf; and\r\n(f) a statement by you made under penalty of perjury, that the information in your notice is accurate, that you are the copyright owner or authorized to act on the copyright owner\'s behalf\r\n\r\nPlease also note that under Section 512(f) of the Copyright Act any person who knowingly materially misrepresents that material or activity is infringing may be subject to liability.','Copyright Information','','publish','closed','closed','','copyright-information','','','2011-11-29 10:55:14','2011-11-29 18:55:14','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?page_id=679',0,'page','',0),(680,1,'2011-10-18 13:46:15','2011-10-18 20:46:15','<div>\n\nAll images on <strong>Provoketive.com</strong> are readily available in various places on the Internet and believed to be in public domain. Images posted are believed to be posted within our rights according to the U.S. Copyright Fair Use Act (title 17, U.S. Code.)\n\n<strong>Claims of Infringement</strong>\n\nIf you believe that any content appearing on <strong>Provoketive.com</strong> infringes on your copyright, please let us know. E-Mail <a href=\"mailto:admin@provoketive.com\">admin@provoketive.com</a>\nfollowing information to us and the infringing material will be removed as soon as possible.\n\n(a) your name, address, telephone number, and e-mail address;\n(b) a description of the copyrighted work that you claim has been infringed;\n(c) the exact URL or a description of each place where alleged infringing material is located;\n(d) a statement by you that you have a good faith belief that the disputed use has not been authorized by you, your agent, or the law;\n(e) your electronic or physical signature or the electronic or physical signature of the person authorized to act on your behalf; and\n(f) a statement by you made under penalty of perjury, that the information in your notice is accurate, that you are the copyright owner or authorized to act on the copyright owner\'s behalf\n\nPlease also note that under Section 512(f) of the Copyright Act any person who knowingly materially misrepresents that material or activity is infringing may be subject to liability.\n\n</div>','Copyright Information','','inherit','open','open','','679-revision','','','2011-10-18 13:46:15','2011-10-18 20:46:15','',679,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/679-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(681,1,'2011-10-18 13:46:47','2011-10-18 20:46:47','<div>\r\n\r\nAll images on <strong>Provoketive.com</strong> are readily available in various places on the Internet and believed to be in public domain. Images posted are believed to be posted within our rights according to the U.S. Copyright Fair Use Act (title 17, U.S. Code.)\r\n\r\n<strong>Claims of Infringement</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you believe that any content appearing on <strong>Provoketive.com</strong> infringes on your copyright, please let us know. E-Mail <a href=\"mailto:admin@provoketive.com\">admin@provoketive.com</a>\r\nfollowing information to us and the infringing material will be removed as soon as possible.\r\n\r\n(a) your name, address, telephone number, and e-mail address;\r\n(b) a description of the copyrighted work that you claim has been infringed;\r\n(c) the exact URL or a description of each place where alleged infringing material is located;\r\n(d) a statement by you that you have a good faith belief that the disputed use has not been authorized by you, your agent, or the law;\r\n(e) your electronic or physical signature or the electronic or physical signature of the person authorized to act on your behalf; and\r\n(f) a statement by you made under penalty of perjury, that the information in your notice is accurate, that you are the copyright owner or authorized to act on the copyright owner\'s behalf\r\n\r\nPlease also note that under Section 512(f) of the Copyright Act any person who knowingly materially misrepresents that material or activity is infringing may be subject to liability.\r\n\r\n</div>','Copyright Information','','inherit','open','open','','679-revision-2','','','2011-10-18 13:46:47','2011-10-18 20:46:47','',679,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/679-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(682,1,'2011-10-18 13:47:29','2011-10-18 20:47:29','All images on Provoketive.com are readily available in various places on the Internet and believed to be in public domain. Images posted are believed to be posted within our rights according to the U.S. Copyright Fair Use Act (title 17, U.S. Code.) Claims of Infringement If you believe that any content appearing on Provoketive.com infringes on your copyright, please let us know. E-Mail admin@provoketive.com following information to us and the infringing material will be removed as soon as possible. (a) your name, address, telephone number, and e-mail address; (b) a description of the copyrighted work that you claim has been infringed; (c) the exact URL or a description of each place where alleged infringing material is located; (d) a statement by you that you have a good faith belief that the disputed use has not been authorized by you, your agent, or the law; (e) your electronic or physical signature or the electronic or physical signature of the person authorized to act on your behalf; and (f) a statement by you made under penalty of perjury, that the information in your notice is accurate, that you are the copyright owner or authorized to act on the copyright owner’s behalf Please…','','','publish','open','open','','682','','','2012-12-18 12:55:03','2012-12-18 20:55:03','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=682',4,'nav_menu_item','',0),(683,1,'2011-10-18 13:59:58','2011-10-18 20:59:58','Below is a list of blogs we think you make find valuable.  If you would like us to add your link, please link to Provoketive.com and then send us an <a href=\"#email\">email</a> of your blog.\r\n\r\nKathy Escobar - <a href=\"http://kathyescobar.com\" target=\"_blank\">Carnival In My Head</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://joyleewilson.org/\" target=\"_blank\">Joy Wilson</a>\r\n\r\nAlise Wright - <a href=\"http://www.alise-write.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Alise Writes</a>\r\n\r\nRay Carroll - <a href=\"http://fallenpastor.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Fallen Pastor</a>\r\n\r\nDeanna Ogle - <a href=\"http://soullikeaspider.com\" target=\"_blank\">Soul Like A Spider</a>\r\n\r\nKen Hagerman - <a href=\"http://www.ramblingbarba.com\" target=\"_blank\">Rambling Barba</a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n<a name=\"email\"></a> [contact-form] [contact-field label=\"Name\" type=\"name\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Email\" type=\"email\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Website\" type=\"url\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Comment\" type=\"textarea\" /] [/contact-form]','Blog List','','publish','open','open','','blog-list','','','2012-01-31 08:20:57','2012-01-31 16:20:57','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?page_id=683',0,'page','',0),(684,1,'2011-10-18 13:59:54','2011-10-18 20:59:54','Below is a list of blogs we think you make find valuable.  If you would like us to add your link, please link to Provoketive.com and then send us an <a href=\"#email\">email</a> of your blog.\n\nKathy Escobar - <a href=\"http://kathyescobar.com\" target=\"_blank\">Carnival In My Head</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://joyleewilson.org/\" target=\"_blank\">Joy Wilson</a>\n\nAlise Wright - <a href=\"http://www.alise-write.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Alise Writes</a>\n\nRay Carroll - <a href=\"http://fallenpastor.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Fallen Pastor</a>\n\nDeanna Ogle - <a href=\"http://soullikeaspider.com\" target=\"_blank\">Soul Like A Spider</a>\n\n&nbsp;\n\n<a name=\"email\"></a> [contact-form] [contact-field label=\"Name\" type=\"name\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Email\" type=\"email\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Website\" type=\"url\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Comment\" type=\"textarea\" /] [/contact-form]','Blog List','','inherit','open','open','','683-revision','','','2011-10-18 13:59:54','2011-10-18 20:59:54','',683,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/683-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(685,1,'2011-10-18 14:00:02','2011-10-18 21:00:02','Below is a list of blogs we think you make find valuable.  If you would like us to add your link, please link to Provoketive.com and then send us an <a href=\"#email\">email</a> of your blog.\r\n\r\nKathy Escobar - <a href=\"http://kathyescobar.com\" target=\"_blank\">Carnival In My Head</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://joyleewilson.org/\" target=\"_blank\">Joy Wilson</a>\r\n\r\nAlise Wright - <a href=\"http://www.alise-write.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Alise Writes</a>\r\n\r\nRay Carroll - <a href=\"http://fallenpastor.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Fallen Pastor</a>\r\n\r\nDeanna Ogle - <a href=\"http://soullikeaspider.com\" target=\"_blank\">Soul Like A Spider</a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n<a name=\"email\"></a> [contact-form] [contact-field label=\"Name\" type=\"name\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Email\" type=\"email\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Website\" type=\"url\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Comment\" type=\"textarea\" /] [/contact-form]','Blog List','','inherit','open','open','','683-autosave','','','2011-10-18 14:00:02','2011-10-18 21:00:02','',683,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/683-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(686,1,'2011-10-18 14:01:03','2011-10-18 21:01:03','Below is a list of blogs we think you make find valuable.  If you would like us to add your link, please link to Provoketive.com and then send us an email of your blog. Kathy Escobar – Carnival In My Head Joy Wilson Alise Wright – Alise Writes Ray Carroll – Fallen Pastor Deanna Ogle – Soul Like A Spider   [contact-form] [contact-field label=\"Name\" type=\"name\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Email\" type=\"email\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Website\" type=\"url\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Comment\" type=\"textarea\" /] [/contact-form]','','','publish','open','open','','686','','','2012-12-18 12:55:09','2012-12-18 20:55:09','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=686',67,'nav_menu_item','',0),(687,1,'2011-10-18 14:14:06','2011-10-18 21:14:06','','300 Ad Sample','','inherit','open','open','','300-ad-sample','','','2011-10-18 14:14:06','2011-10-18 21:14:06','',29,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/300-Ad-Sample.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(688,1,'2011-10-18 09:33:52','2011-10-18 16:33:52','There are two opportunities to advertise on Provoketive: Events and Banner Advertising.  All proceeds go towards creating this rich space of conversation and community.\r\n<h3>Events Listings</h3>\r\nProvoketive lists conferences and events under the main heading of Events.  To advertise your event is a $25 dollar listing fee.  That\'s it.\r\n<h3>Banner Advertising</h3>\r\nProvoketive Magazine attracts educated adults with an interest in life, culture, justice, spirituality, and current events. Banner advertising runs for 1 month as is available on a space availability basis.  There are two positions in the magazine: front page and all sub-pages.  Sub-page ads run in one of four main categories: life, faith, justice, culture.\r\n<h4>Large Advertisements: 630x125</h4>\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/630-Ad-Sample.png\"><img title=\"630 Ad Sample\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/630-Ad-Sample.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"630\" height=\"125\" /></a>\r\n\r\nLarge Advertisement Front Page Top: 630x125 = $150\r\n\r\nLarge Advertisement Front Page Bottom: 630x125 = $125\r\n\r\nLarge Advertisement Sub Page: 630x125 = $100\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n<h4>Small Advertisements: 220x125</h4>\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/220-Sample-Ad.png\"><img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-641\" title=\"220 Sample Ad\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/220-Sample-Ad.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"220\" height=\"125\" /></a>\r\n\r\nSmall Advertisement Front Page Top: 220x125 = $75\r\n\r\nSmall Advertisement Front Page Middle: 220x125 = $60\r\n\r\nSmall Advertisement Sub Page: 220x125 = $25\r\n<h4></h4>\r\n<h4>Buying Ads</h4>\r\nTo purchase advertising, please contact Jonathan using the form below.  Someone will contact you within one business day.\r\n\r\n[contact-form] [contact-field label=\"Name\" type=\"name\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Email\" type=\"email\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Ad Space You Want To Buy\" type=\"url\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Comment\" type=\"textarea\" required=\"true\" /] [/contact-form]\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Advertise on Provoketive','','inherit','open','open','','29-revision-8','','','2011-10-18 09:33:52','2011-10-18 16:33:52','',29,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/29-revision-8/',0,'revision','',0),(689,1,'2011-10-18 14:19:35','2011-10-18 21:19:35','','300 Advertise Here','','inherit','open','open','','300-advertise-here','','','2011-10-18 14:19:35','2011-10-18 21:19:35','',0,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/300-Advertise-Here.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(690,1,'2011-10-18 14:17:00','2011-10-18 21:17:00','There are two opportunities to advertise on Provoketive: Events and Banner Advertising.  All proceeds go towards creating this rich space of conversation and community.\r\n<h3>Events Listings</h3>\r\nProvoketive lists conferences and events under the main heading of Events.  To advertise your event is a $25 dollar listing fee.  That\'s it.\r\n<h3>Banner Advertising</h3>\r\nProvoketive Magazine attracts educated adults with an interest in life, culture, justice, spirituality, and current events. Banner advertising runs for 1 month as is available on a space availability basis.  There are two positions in the magazine: front page and all sub-pages.  Sub-page ads run in one of four main categories: life, faith, justice, culture.\r\n<h4>Large Advertisements: 630x125</h4>\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/630-Ad-Sample.png\"><img title=\"630 Ad Sample\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/630-Ad-Sample.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"630\" height=\"125\" /></a>\r\n\r\nLarge Advertisement Front Page Top: 630x125 = $150\r\n\r\nLarge Advertisement Front Page Bottom: 630x125 = $125\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n<h4>Small Advertisements: 220x125</h4>\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/220-Sample-Ad.png\"><img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-641\" title=\"220 Sample Ad\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/220-Sample-Ad.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"220\" height=\"125\" /></a>\r\n\r\nSmall Advertisement Front Page Top: 220x125 = $75\r\n\r\nSmall Advertisement Front Page Middle: 220x125 = $60\r\n<h4>Sub Page Advertisements: 300x250</h4>\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/300-Ad-Sample.png\"><img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-687\" title=\"300 Ad Sample\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/300-Ad-Sample.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"250\" /></a>\r\n\r\nSub Page Advertisement Top: 300x250 = $75\r\n\r\nSub Page Advertisement Middle: 300x250 = $60\r\n\r\nSub Page Advertisement Bottom: 300x250 = $50\r\n<h4>Buying Ads</h4>\r\nTo purchase advertising, please contact Jonathan using the form below.  Someone will contact you within one business day.\r\n\r\n[contact-form] [contact-field label=\"Name\" type=\"name\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Email\" type=\"email\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Ad Space You Want To Buy\" type=\"url\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Comment\" type=\"textarea\" required=\"true\" /] [/contact-form]\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Advertise on Provoketive','','inherit','open','open','','29-revision-9','','','2011-10-18 14:17:00','2011-10-18 21:17:00','',29,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/29-revision-9/',0,'revision','',0),(691,1,'2011-10-18 14:20:49','2011-10-18 21:20:49','There are two opportunities to advertise on Provoketive: Events and Banner Advertising.  All proceeds go towards creating this rich space of conversation and community.\r\n<h3>Events Listings</h3>\r\nProvoketive lists conferences and events under the main heading of Events.  To advertise your event is a $25 dollar listing fee.  That\'s it.\r\n<h3>Banner Advertising</h3>\r\nProvoketive Magazine attracts educated adults with an interest in life, culture, justice, spirituality, and current events. Banner advertising runs for 1 month as is available on a space availability basis.  There are two positions in the magazine: front page and all sub-pages.  Sub-page ads run in one of four main categories: life, faith, justice, culture.\r\n<h3>Large Advertisements: 630x125</h3>\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/630-Ad-Sample.png\"><img title=\"630 Ad Sample\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/630-Ad-Sample.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"630\" height=\"125\" /></a>\r\n\r\nLarge Advertisement Front Page Top: 630x125 = $150\r\n\r\nLarge Advertisement Front Page Bottom: 630x125 = $125\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n<h3>Small Advertisements: 220x125</h3>\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/220-Sample-Ad.png\"><img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-641\" title=\"220 Sample Ad\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/220-Sample-Ad.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"220\" height=\"125\" /></a>\r\n\r\nSmall Advertisement Front Page Top: 220x125 = $75\r\n\r\nSmall Advertisement Front Page Middle: 220x125 = $60\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n<h3>Sub Page Advertisements: 300x250</h3>\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/300-Ad-Sample.png\"><img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-687\" title=\"300 Ad Sample\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/300-Ad-Sample.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"250\" /></a>\r\n\r\nSub Page Advertisement Top: 300x250 = $75\r\n\r\nSub Page Advertisement Middle: 300x250 = $60\r\n\r\nSub Page Advertisement Bottom: 300x250 = $50\r\n<h4>Buying Ads</h4>\r\nTo purchase advertising, please contact Jonathan using the form below.  Someone will contact you within one business day.\r\n\r\n[contact-form] [contact-field label=\"Name\" type=\"name\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Email\" type=\"email\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Ad Space You Want To Buy\" type=\"url\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Comment\" type=\"textarea\" required=\"true\" /] [/contact-form]\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Advertise on Provoketive','','inherit','open','open','','29-revision-10','','','2011-10-18 14:20:49','2011-10-18 21:20:49','',29,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/29-revision-10/',0,'revision','',0),(692,1,'2011-10-18 14:33:01','2011-10-18 21:33:01','','Deanna Ogle','','publish','open','open','','deanna-ogle','','','2012-12-18 12:55:07','2012-12-18 20:55:07','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=692',46,'nav_menu_item','',0),(693,1,'2011-10-18 14:33:33','2011-10-18 21:33:33','','Amy Mitchell','','publish','open','open','','amy-mitchell','','','2012-12-18 12:55:07','2012-12-18 20:55:07','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=693',43,'nav_menu_item','',0),(694,1,'2011-10-18 14:34:14','2011-10-18 21:34:14','','Jonathan Crouch','','publish','open','open','','jonathan-crouch','','','2012-12-18 12:55:04','2012-12-18 20:55:04','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=694',16,'nav_menu_item','',0),(695,1,'2011-05-16 23:30:59','2011-05-17 06:30:59','&nbsp;\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/wilderness-church.jpg\"><img class=\"size-medium wp-image-145 aligncenter\" style=\"margin-top: 10px;margin-bottom: 10px;border: 10px solid black\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/wilderness-church-300x187.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"439\" height=\"286\" /></a> A profound spiritual encounter with God  at  the tender age of 18  derailed the train of self-destruction I was on. Jesus helped me  disembark and with the wisdom and power of the Holy Ghost I have managed  to stay out of that train yard for good.\n\nInstead, I\'ve  hung out in churchyards. From the get-go, I loved this thing called  church. Each Sunday was like a party. People from all walks of life  gathering together to sing songs, hear a sermon, pray and cry and laugh  together. Sometimes there were potlucks. Along the way, though,  somewhere in adulthood when I realized church is not a party but an expression of God\'s kingdom,  and thus, people are needed to serve and use their gifts to keep the  kingdom of church going- this is when I shifted into living a  church-centered life.\n\nI evolved into a super-volunteer.  I was at everything. At one time I was teaching Sunday school, leading a  missions program for kids, on the prayer team and I attended a Bible  class on Sunday mornings as well as typically attended three services a  week. I kept this kind of pace up for years, thinking it was how it\'s  supposed to be. I felt pangs of tension along the way, though. When I  slowed down long enough for the dust of my chaotic church schedule to  settle I\'d hear the faint voice of my real self buried under the rubble  saying, \"This ain\'t right. You\'ve created an  insulated church life for yourself. Break out.\"   But the voice was so  little that it was unable to keep  my attention.\n\nOne fine Portland morning when the rain was falling  pretty as  the grey clouds cried from the sky, I had what  some would call an  epiphany.  I had sat down to pray, and Lord knows I was a workhorse of a  prayer warrior on top of everything else, when I felt the overwhelming  presence of the Creator Lifeforce whom I know as God hush me right down  with a startling single sentence : <em>unplug from every ministry you are  in.</em>\n<p style=\"text-align: left\">I began to cry like the rain clouds outside my  window as the voice of Love exposed my wretched overworked soul. Oh how  hard I was working  to achieve worth through spiritual service and gain  people\'s favor through church volunteerism. I was desperate to belong,  but without a sense of self-acceptance I could not trust that anyone,  God or the family of God, could accept me for Me. I had to work my way  into that acceptance, and ohmyf*ckinggod, I was wearing myself out and  neglecting my children along the way.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left\">I trusted that  small but big Voice that visited me that day. I began to  unravel my  ministry obligations. And then, I sat. Just sat, like a  second-string  right fielder sitting the game out in the dugout. I sat.  And as I sat  with my unscarred calendar hanging in the kitchen and my  voice mail box  empty and lonely, life unfurled within my perishing soul.  I was in the  wilderness, and wild as she may be, there is a vista of isolated  beauty  that can\'t  be found unless you leave the hustle of the crowded  city and head deep  into it. <a href=\"http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-11e5hP2gX4k/Tcl0bgqG1uI/AAAAAAAAC3k/hnj8MlOYzMA/s1600/wilderness+church.jpg\">\n</a></p>\nThat was more than five years ago. I have  discovered new canyons and mesas of wilderness wisdom on this spiritual  trek. I learned that I actually do have an anchoredness in the love of  God. We are good. But what is lacking is trust and security with the  people of God. I still have a bent inside of me to prove myself lovable  and likeable. I want to show you how cool I am so you\'ll be my friend.  This surfaced again in my life not too long ago. My family and I are now  part of an irreverent, irreligious faith community of fierce  no-bullsh*t-allowed sisters and brothers, and even in this freeing space  of life, I managed to once again move in a spirit of codependent  neediness for love and approval. Once again the spirit of epiphany  rescued me and once again, I am relegated back to the dugout which is  just fine with me. I am blackdog determined to let the people of God  prove that I am a woman loved even if I never do a damn thing to pitch  in and help with whatever church chores that are begging for volunteers.  I am capable, oh-so-capable, but my capability will ruin me like that  first drink a recovering alcoholic takes. I have to say no and recover  from my churchalholicism.\n\nIt\'s liberating and  unsettling. I suppose there might always be a bit of a limp in me to  veer into unhealthy service mode. But I\'ve thrown the crutches of  churchcentered living down into a gulley somewhere in the wild. I\'ll  stay on my wilderness sojourn knowing that I\'m in fine company with  other sun-kissed women and men who will enjoy my company without needing  me to do anything for them.  This is life unfurled on the inside and  out.\n\n&nbsp;','Letting Go of a Church-centered Life','','inherit','open','open','','144-revision','','','2011-05-16 23:30:59','2011-05-17 06:30:59','',144,'http://provoketive.com/2011/05/16/144-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(698,1,'2011-10-18 14:40:02','2011-10-18 21:40:02','A profound spiritual encounter with God  at  the tender age of 18 derailed the train of self-destruction I was on. Jesus helped me disembark and with the wisdom and power of the Holy Ghost I have managed to stay out of that train yard for good.\n\nInstead, I\'ve hung out in churchyards. From the get-go, I loved this thing called church. Each Sunday was like a party. People from all walks of life gathering together to sing songs, hear a sermon, pray and cry and laugh together. Sometimes there were potlucks. Along the way, though, somewhere in adulthood when I realized church is not a party but an expression of God\'s kingdom, and thus, people are needed to serve and use their gifts to keep the kingdom of church going- this is when I shifted into living a church-centered life.\n\nI evolved into a super-volunteer. I was at everything. At one time I was teaching Sunday school, leading a missions program for kids, on the prayer team and I attended a Bible class on Sunday mornings as well as typically attended three services a week. I kept this kind of pace up for years, thinking it was how it\'s supposed to be. I felt pangs of tension along the way, though. When I slowed down long enough for the dust of my chaotic church schedule to settle I\'d hear the faint voice of my real self buried under the rubble  saying, \"This ain\'t right. You\'ve created an insulated church life for yourself. Break out.\"   But the voice was so little that it was unable to keep  my attention.\n\nOne fine Portland morning when the rain was falling  pretty as the grey clouds cried from the sky, I had what  some would call an epiphany.  I had sat down to pray, and Lord knows I was a workhorse of a prayer warrior on top of everything else, when I felt the overwhelming presence of the Creator Lifeforce whom I know as God hush me right down with a startling single sentence : <em>unplug from every ministry you are in.</em>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">I began to cry like the rain clouds outside my window as the voice of Love exposed my wretched overworked soul. Oh how hard I was working  to achieve worth through spiritual service and gain people\'s favor through church volunteerism. I was desperate to belong, but without a sense of self-acceptance I could not trust that anyone, God or the family of God, could accept me for Me. I had to work my way into that acceptance, and ohmyf*ckinggod, I was wearing myself out and neglecting my children along the way.</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">I trusted that small but big Voice that visited me that day. I began to unravel my ministry obligations. And then, I sat. Just sat, like a second-string right fielder sitting the game out in the dugout. I sat. And as I sat with my unscarred calendar hanging in the kitchen and my voice mail box empty and lonely, life unfurled within my perishing soul. I was in the wilderness, and wild as she may be, there is a vista of isolated  beauty  that can\'t be found unless you leave the hustle of the crowded city and head deep into it. <a href=\"http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-11e5hP2gX4k/Tcl0bgqG1uI/AAAAAAAAC3k/hnj8MlOYzMA/s1600/wilderness+church.jpg\">\n</a></p>\nThat was more than five years ago. I have discovered new canyons and mesas of wilderness wisdom on this spiritual trek. I learned that I actually do have an anchoredness in the love of God. We are good. But what is lacking is trust and security with the people of God. I still have a bent inside of me to prove myself lovable and likeable. I want to show you how cool I am so you\'ll be my friend. This surfaced again in my life not too long ago. My family and I are now part of an irreverent, irreligious faith community of fierce no-bullsh*t-allowed sisters and brothers, and even in this freeing space of life, I managed to once again move in a spirit of codependent neediness for love and approval. Once again the spirit of epiphany rescued me and once again, I am relegated back to the dugout which is just fine with me. I am blackdog determined to let the people of God prove that I am a woman loved even if I never do a damn thing to pitch in and help with whatever church chores that are begging for volunteers. I am capable, oh-so-capable, but my capability will ruin me like that first drink a recovering alcoholic takes. I have to say no and recover from my churchalholicism.\n\nIt\'s liberating and unsettling. I suppose there might always be a bit of a limp in me to veer into unhealthy service mode. But I\'ve thrown the crutches of churchcentered living down into a gulley somewhere in the wild. I\'ll stay on my wilderness sojourn knowing that I\'m in fine company with other sun-kissed women and men who will enjoy my company without needing me to do anything for them.  This is life unfurled on the inside and out.\n\n&nbsp;','Letting Go of a Church-centered Life','','inherit','open','open','','144-autosave','','','2011-10-18 14:40:02','2011-10-18 21:40:02','',144,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/144-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(699,1,'2011-10-18 14:42:31','2011-10-18 21:42:31',' ','','','publish','open','open','','699','','','2012-01-19 11:08:29','2012-01-19 19:08:29','',15,'http://provoketive.com/?p=699',24,'nav_menu_item','',0),(1719,43,'2011-11-06 08:00:54','2011-11-06 16:00:54','My husband, an educator and fierce advocate for students, recently suggested we apply No Child Left Behind principles to other professions.  We ended up jokingly deciding that perhaps pastors should measure their success not by number of congregants but by whether or not they had achieved zero percent sin rate among their membership.  Sadly, some Christians already seem to be taking this idea seriously.\r\n\r\nIt never ceases to amaze me the rampant legalism among conservative Christians.  I certainly don\'t doubt their sincerity of belief; but I question whether, for many people, believing means much more than \"not sinning.\"  Too often I hear people trying to equate loving our neighbors as no more than being polite when people irritate us.  Purity (in word and deed) trumps all else as the measure of holiness.  Reaching out is achieved by talking to anyone and everyone about our faith (the hairdresser, the grocery clerk, the nurse in the doctor\'s office).  Helping those in need becomes little other than participating in holiday food and gift basket collections.\r\n\r\nNone of those things are bad.  But they fall a little flat.  I wonder if we\'ve forgotten that being a faithful Christian is more than a list of things we\'re no longer supposed to do, a Personal Purity Inventory of sorts.  In order to show the world that you are a true disciple of Christ, you make regular tick marks on your PPI, thus demonstrating how far you\'ve come from your days as a depraved sinner.\r\n\r\nThe result of that is a bunch of people who freak out over trick-or-treating, Santa Claus, and sex, (not necessarily in that order), while failing to see the very real horrors all around us.  For example, on Halloween this year, Mark Hall of Casting Crowns posted a picture of <a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150463031618793&amp;set=a.432381688792.209583.48842713792&amp;type=1\">himself in an Incredible Hulk Costume</a>.  The end result was miles and miles of comments, attacking Mark for his costume, attacking others for attacking him, and supporting Mark.  I think my favorite response to it was his own: \"Last night, I learned everyone has a whale to save.\"  Why not put that same effort into achieving peace between nations, ending poverty, and preserving our natural world?\r\n\r\nMaybe it\'s time all of us put more of ourselves into what really matters.  Because when we do, we will almost certainly achieve No Sinner Left Behind.','No Sinner Left Behind','','publish','open','open','','no-sinner-left-behind','','','2011-11-03 08:45:35','2011-11-03 15:45:35','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=1719',0,'post','',3),(1168,43,'2011-10-26 08:00:34','2011-10-26 15:00:34','<p align=\"left\">In today\'s political climate, it can be tough to make sense of the cacophony of voices using \"social justice\" as their rallying cry.  Everyone with a stake in our nation\'s well-being (which, in theory, ought to be one hundred percent of the population) views the concept through his or her own lens.  It can be difficult to make sense of what it means when we have a person on one side demanding an end to poverty and a person on the other side lobbying for marriage equality, while the people in front and in back of us clamor for us to care about education and healthcare reform.  So what exactly is social justice?</p>\r\n<p align=\"left\">A quick Google search for the term \"social justice\" yields over 8 million results.  On just the first two pages are entries from sources as diverse as Wikipedia, Dictionary.com, Fox News, and several personal web pages.  It seems everyone has an opinion on the matter.</p>\r\n<p align=\"left\">While digging for some specifics, I came across an article from <a href=\"http://www.crosswalk.com/\">Crosswalk.com</a>, in the news and commentary section.  Dr. Paul Kengor, of Grove City College, has <a href=\"http://www.crosswalk.com/news/economic-justice-as-social-justice-11635548.html\">this</a> to say on the matter:</p>\r\n\r\n<blockquote>\r\n<p align=\"left\">\"Most exasperating is that many who speak the language of social justice really mean \"economic justice.\" Unlike traditional practitioners of social justice, whose occasional noble interests ranged from prison reform to child-labor laws, many modern practitioners seek wealth redistribution, \"living wages,\" progressive income taxes, and an eternally-widening net of federal government power and central planning; they are inclined to class interests rather than human rights. And, by their estimate, achieving <em>economic justice</em> requires collectivism. They invoke <em>social</em> justice not to try to resolve conventional <em>social</em> differences as much as class/income differences.</p>\r\n<p align=\"left\">\"This is why, in many modern eyes, including those of the much-maligned Glenn Beck, mention of \"social justice\" seems a red flag for socialism.\"</p>\r\n</blockquote>\r\n<p align=\"left\">I had several reactions to Dr. Kengor\'s statements.  First, I was annoyed.  How dare he presume to know what people mean when they use the term \"social justice\"?  Then I decided that I must have misunderstood.  He wasn\'t <em>really</em> saying that economic justice isn\'t social justice, was he?  Finally, I simply shelved the comments as one more example of someone conflating economic reform with communism.</p>\r\n<p align=\"left\">It\'s absolutely true that economic justice is not the same as social justice, although it is a subset.  The problem is not that Dr. Kengor seems to think that\'s the only problem we social justice Christians emphasize.  He\'s right, it gets a lot of press.  The heart of the matter is that Dr. Kengor has equated the political problem of wealth redistribution with the social problem of the income gap and its associated issues.</p>\r\n<p align=\"left\">Social justice isn\'t about politics.  It may involve government, laws, and structural reforms.  But it isn\'t about what the guys at the top decide to do to \"even the score.\"  It\'s about what we, the people, do to create a social climate that values all people and helps everyone reach his or her potential, and working together for the good of all.</p>','Defining Social Justice','','publish','open','open','','defining-social-justice','','','2011-10-25 22:27:29','2011-10-26 05:27:29','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=1168',0,'post','',3),(703,1,'2011-10-18 09:41:58','2011-10-18 16:41:58','Periodically we send out a newsletter with some of the best conversations.  Use the form below to subscribe.\r\n\r\n<form action=\"http://www.graphicmail.com/RWCode/subscribe.asp?SiteID=60603&amp;SID=0\" method=\"post\" name=\"inputForm\"><input type=\"hidden\" name=\"SID\" value=\"0\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"ReturnURL\" value=\"\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"Resize\" value=\"1\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"Mode\" value=\"update\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"ResultMode\" value=\"\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"HitID\" value=\"0\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"OldEmail\" value=\"\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"EmailChange\" value=\"0\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"EmailID\" value=\"0\" />\r\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" align=\"center\">\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>\r\n<div>\r\n<div><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\">\r\n</span></div>\r\n</div>\r\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\">\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td colspan=\"2\" align=\"left\">\r\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"2\" cellpadding=\"0\">\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td align=\"right\" nowrap=\"nowrap\" width=\"10%\"><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\"><strong>Email   </strong></span></td>\r\n<td><input type=\"text\" name=\"Email\" value=\"\" size=\"40\" /></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td align=\"right\" nowrap=\"nowrap\"><strong><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\">First name    </span></strong></td>\r\n<td><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\">\r\n<input type=\"text\" name=\"Col1\" value=\"\" size=\"40\" /></span></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td align=\"right\" nowrap=\"nowrap\"><strong><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\">Last name    </span></strong></td>\r\n<td><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\">\r\n<input type=\"text\" name=\"Col2\" value=\"\" size=\"40\" /></span></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td colspan=\"2\" align=\"center\" nowrap=\"nowrap\"><input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" /></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n</tbody>\r\n</table>\r\n</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n</tbody>\r\n</table>\r\n<div><center>Please come back at any time to modify your profile.</center><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\"><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\">\r\n</span></span>\r\n<table cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" align=\"center\">\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td align=\"center\"><a style=\"text-decoration: none; color: #666666; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px;\" href=\"http://graphicmail.com/\">Email marketing by</a><strong> GraphicMail</strong></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n</tbody>\r\n</table>\r\n</div></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n</tbody>\r\n</table>\r\n</form>','Newsletter','','inherit','open','open','','33-revision-4','','','2011-10-18 09:41:58','2011-10-18 16:41:58','',33,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/33-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(704,1,'2011-10-18 15:36:23','2011-10-18 22:36:23','Periodically we send out a newsletter with some of the best conversations. Use the form below to subscribe.\r\n\r\n<form action=\"http://www.graphicmail.com/RWCode/subscribe.asp?SiteID=60603&amp;SID=0\" method=\"post\" name=\"inputForm\"><input type=\"hidden\" name=\"SID\" value=\"0\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"ReturnURL\" value=\"\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"Resize\" value=\"1\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"Mode\" value=\"update\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"ResultMode\" value=\"\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"HitID\" value=\"0\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"OldEmail\" value=\"\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"EmailChange\" value=\"0\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"EmailID\" value=\"0\" />\r\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" align=\"center\">\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>\r\n<div>\r\n<div><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\">\r\n</span></div>\r\n</div>\r\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\">\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td colspan=\"2\" align=\"left\">\r\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"2\" cellpadding=\"0\">\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td align=\"right\" nowrap=\"nowrap\" width=\"10%\"><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\"><strong>Email   </strong></span></td>\r\n<td><input type=\"text\" name=\"Email\" value=\"\" size=\"40\" /></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td align=\"right\" nowrap=\"nowrap\"><strong><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\">First name    </span></strong></td>\r\n<td><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\"> <input type=\"text\" name=\"Col1\" value=\"\" size=\"40\" /></span></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td align=\"right\" nowrap=\"nowrap\"><strong><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\">Last name    </span></strong></td>\r\n<td><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\"> <input type=\"text\" name=\"Col2\" value=\"\" size=\"40\" /></span></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td colspan=\"2\" align=\"center\" nowrap=\"nowrap\"><input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" /></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n</tbody>\r\n</table>\r\n</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n</tbody>\r\n</table>\r\n<div><center>Please come back at any time to modify your profile.</center><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\"><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\">\r\n</span></span>\r\n<table cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" align=\"center\">\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td align=\"center\"><a style=\"text-decoration: none; color: #666666; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px;\" href=\"http://graphicmail.com/\">Email marketing by</a><strong> GraphicMail</strong></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n</tbody>\r\n</table>\r\n</div></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n</tbody>\r\n</table>\r\n</form>','Newsletter','','inherit','open','open','','33-revision-5','','','2011-10-18 15:36:23','2011-10-18 22:36:23','',33,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/33-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(707,1,'2011-10-18 15:45:24','2011-10-18 22:45:24','','dalai_lama2','','inherit','open','open','','dalai_lama2','','','2011-10-18 15:45:24','2011-10-18 22:45:24','',705,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/dalai_lama2.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(709,1,'2011-10-18 15:48:59','2011-10-18 22:48:59','The Dalai Lama, when asked what surprised him most about humanity, answered \"Man. Because he sacrifices his health in order to make money.  Then he sacrifices money to recuperate his health.  And then he is so anxious about the future that he does not enjoy the present; the result being that he does not live in the present or the future; he lives as if he is never going to die, and then dies having never really lived.\"\n\nWhat do you think?','What Surprised The Dalai Lama','','inherit','open','open','','705-autosave','','','2011-10-18 15:48:59','2011-10-18 22:48:59','',705,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/705-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(708,1,'2011-10-18 15:47:14','2011-10-18 22:47:14','<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/dalai_lama.jpg\"><img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-706\" title=\"dalai_lama\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/dalai_lama.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"320\" height=\"217\" /></a>\n\nThe Dalai Lama, when asked what surprised him most about humanity, answered \"Man. Because he sacrifices his health in order to make money.  Then he sacrifices money to recuperate his health.  And then he is so anxious about the future that he does not enjoy the present; the result being that he does not live in the present or the future; he lives as if he is never go\n\nWhat do you think?','What Surprised The Dalai Lama','','inherit','open','open','','705-revision','','','2011-10-18 15:47:14','2011-10-18 22:47:14','',705,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/705-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(710,1,'2011-10-18 16:12:39','2011-10-18 23:12:39','Fox News is reporting that a <a href=\"http://www.foxnews.com/health/2011/10/18/oklahoma-mother-reportedly-refused-cancer-treatment-so-child-could-survive/\" target=\"_blank\">mother gave her life by refusing cancer treatments</a> while her child was still in the womb.  This type of story is so tragic.\r\n\r\nWhat do you think of her choice?','Mother Gives Her Life','','publish','open','open','','mother-gives-her-life','','','2011-10-18 16:13:15','2011-10-18 23:13:15','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=710',0,'post','',0),(711,1,'2011-10-18 16:11:56','2011-10-18 23:11:56','','cancer_woman','','inherit','open','open','','cancer_woman','','','2011-10-18 16:11:56','2011-10-18 23:11:56','',710,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/cancer_woman.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(712,1,'2011-10-18 16:02:28','2011-10-18 23:02:28','Fox News is reporting that a <a href=\"http://www.foxnews.com/health/2011/10/18/oklahoma-mother-reportedly-refused-cancer-treatment-so-child-could-survive/\" target=\"_blank\">mother gave her life by refusing cancer treatments</a> while her child was still in the womb.\n\nWhat do you think?','Mother Gives Her Life','','inherit','open','open','','710-revision','','','2011-10-18 16:02:28','2011-10-18 23:02:28','',710,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/710-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(713,1,'2011-10-18 16:12:39','2011-10-18 23:12:39','Fox News is reporting that a <a href=\"http://www.foxnews.com/health/2011/10/18/oklahoma-mother-reportedly-refused-cancer-treatment-so-child-could-survive/\" target=\"_blank\">mother gave her life by refusing cancer treatments</a> while her child was still in the womb.\r\n\r\nWhat do you think?','Mother Gives Her Life','','inherit','open','open','','710-revision-2','','','2011-10-18 16:12:39','2011-10-18 23:12:39','',710,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/710-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(714,1,'2011-10-18 16:14:19','2011-10-18 23:14:19','Fox News is reporting that a <a href=\"http://www.foxnews.com/health/2011/10/18/oklahoma-mother-reportedly-refused-cancer-treatment-so-child-could-survive/\" target=\"_blank\">mother gave her life by refusing cancer treatments</a> while her child was still in the womb.  This type of story is so tragic.\n\nWhat do you think of her choice?','Mother Gives Her Life','','inherit','open','open','','710-autosave','','','2011-10-18 16:14:19','2011-10-18 23:14:19','',710,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/710-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(715,1,'2011-05-12 20:31:03','2011-05-12 20:31:03','','Contact Us','','inherit','open','open','','16-revision','','','2011-05-12 20:31:03','2011-05-12 20:31:03','',16,'http://provoketive.com/2011/05/12/16-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(716,1,'2011-10-18 16:16:04','2011-10-18 23:16:04','[contact-form] [contact-field label=\"Name\" type=\"name\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Email\" type=\"email\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Comment\" type=\"textarea\" required=\"true\" /] [/contact-form]','Contact Us','','inherit','open','open','','16-revision-2','','','2011-10-18 16:16:04','2011-10-18 23:16:04','',16,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/16-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(717,1,'2011-10-18 16:16:23','2011-10-18 23:16:23','[contact-form] [contact-field label=\"Name\" type=\"name\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Email\" type=\"email\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Comment\" type=\"textarea\" required=\"true\" /] [/contact-form]','Contact Us','','inherit','open','open','','16-revision-3','','','2011-10-18 16:16:23','2011-10-18 23:16:23','',16,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/16-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(718,1,'2011-10-18 16:16:48','2011-10-18 23:16:48','[contact-form] [contact-field label=\"Name\" type=\"name\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Email\" type=\"email\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Comment\" type=\"textarea\" required=\"true\" /] [/contact-form]','Contact Us','','inherit','open','open','','16-revision-4','','','2011-10-18 16:16:48','2011-10-18 23:16:48','',16,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/16-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(719,1,'2011-10-18 16:25:17','2011-10-18 23:25:17','CNN Deputy Political Director Paul Steinhauser suggests something interesting.\r\n<blockquote>\"In a city where fortunes are won and lost, there\'s a safe bet about Tuesday night\'s CNN Western Republican debate: It will influence the race for the GOP presidential nomination.\"</blockquote>\r\nMy question is this: Do debates really matter?  Do they influence us in a way that makes us really choose, or are they fodder for the masses?','Do The Debates Really Matter','','publish','open','open','','do-the-debates-really-matter','','','2011-10-18 17:09:29','2011-10-19 00:09:29','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=719',0,'post','',0),(720,1,'2011-10-18 16:22:16','2011-10-18 23:22:16','','cnn_debates','','inherit','open','open','','cnn_debates','','','2011-10-18 16:22:16','2011-10-18 23:22:16','',719,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/cnn_debates.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(721,1,'2011-10-18 16:24:54','2011-10-18 23:24:54','CNN Deputy Political Director Paul Steinhauser suggests something interesting.\n\n\"In a city where fortunes are won and lost, there\'s a safe bet about Tuesday night\'s CNN Western Republican debate: It will influence the race for the GOP presidential nomination.\"\n\nMy question is, Do debates really matter?  Do they influence us in a way that makes us really choose, or are they fodder for the masses?','Do The Debates Really Matter','','inherit','open','open','','719-revision','','','2011-10-18 16:24:54','2011-10-18 23:24:54','',719,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/719-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(722,1,'2011-10-18 16:24:58','2011-10-18 23:24:58','CNN Deputy Political Director Paul Steinhauser suggests something interesting.\r\n<blockquote>\"In a city where fortunes are won and lost, there\'s a safe bet about Tuesday night\'s CNN Western Republican debate: It will influence the race for the GOP presidential nomination.\"</blockquote>\r\nMy question is, Do debates really matter?  Do they influence us in a way that makes us really choose, or are they fodder for the masses?','Do The Debates Really Matter','','inherit','open','open','','719-revision-2','','','2011-10-18 16:24:58','2011-10-18 23:24:58','',719,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/719-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(723,1,'2011-10-18 16:25:03','2011-10-18 23:25:03','CNN Deputy Political Director Paul Steinhauser suggests something interesting.\r\n<blockquote>\"In a city where fortunes are won and lost, there\'s a safe bet about Tuesday night\'s CNN Western Republican debate: It will influence the race for the GOP presidential nomination.\"</blockquote>\r\nMy question is, Do debates really matter?  Do they influence us in a way that makes us really choose, or are they fodder for the masses?','Do The Debates Really Matter','','inherit','open','open','','719-revision-3','','','2011-10-18 16:25:03','2011-10-18 23:25:03','',719,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/719-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(724,1,'2011-10-18 16:25:17','2011-10-18 23:25:17','CNN Deputy Political Director Paul Steinhauser suggests something interesting.\r\n<blockquote>\"In a city where fortunes are won and lost, there\'s a safe bet about Tuesday night\'s CNN Western Republican debate: It will influence the race for the GOP presidential nomination.\"</blockquote>\r\nMy question is, Do debates really matter?  Do they influence us in a way that makes us really choose, or are they fodder for the masses?','Do The Debates Really Matter','','inherit','open','open','','719-revision-4','','','2011-10-18 16:25:17','2011-10-18 23:25:17','',719,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/719-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(725,1,'2011-10-18 16:26:41','2011-10-18 23:26:41','CNN Deputy Political Director Paul Steinhauser suggests something interesting.\n<blockquote>\"In a city where fortunes are won and lost, there\'s a safe bet about Tuesday night\'s CNN Western Republican debate: It will influence the race for the GOP presidential nomination.\"</blockquote>\nMy question is this: Do debates really matter?  Do they influence us in a way that makes us really choose, or are they fodder for the masses?','Do The Debates Really Matter','','inherit','open','open','','719-autosave','','','2011-10-18 16:26:41','2011-10-18 23:26:41','',719,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/719-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(726,1,'2011-10-18 16:38:50','2011-10-18 23:38:50','<span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Mohandas Gandhi, one of the most influential figures in modern history considered these seven issues to be perilous to humanity.</span></span>\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Wealth without Work </span></li>\r\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Pleasure without Conscience </span></li>\r\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Science without Humanity</span></li>\r\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\"> Knowledge without Character </span></li>\r\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Politics without Principle </span></li>\r\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Commerce without Morality </span></li>\r\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Worship without Sacrifice</span></li>\r\n</ul>\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">About ten years ago there was a huge \"work/life balance\" movement in the business space that came out of Silicon Valley. It created a great conversation for those who would become slaves to the Internet bubble, and it\'s promises of millions if you just worked 60 hours work weeks.  And then there was the counterbalance movement, which said balance is a myth that is impossible. The two movements were started arguably in the same space, at a magazine called <a href=\"http://www.fastcompany.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Fast Company</a>.\r\n\r\nSo when I saw this list I thought back to those two movements. And what I\'ve come to believe is that balance can only be achieved by bringing mindfulness to each category but in different seasons of life. So right now I might be working on wealth, while science takes a back seat. I don\'t forget about science. I just recognize that my energy needs to be focused. And if I never return to it, I\'m out of balance.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Which one resonates with you and why?\r\n</span>','Mahatma\'s Seven Deadly Sins','','publish','open','open','','mahatmas-seven-deadly-sins','','','2011-10-18 17:00:29','2011-10-19 00:00:29','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=726',0,'post','',0),(727,1,'2011-10-18 16:38:07','2011-10-18 23:38:07','','ghandi_march','','inherit','open','open','','ghandi_march','','','2011-10-18 16:38:07','2011-10-18 23:38:07','',726,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/ghandi_march.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(728,1,'2011-10-18 16:31:18','2011-10-18 23:31:18','<span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Mohandas Gandhi, one of the most influential figures in modern history considered these seven issues to be perilous to humanity.</span></span>\n<ul>\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Wealth without Work </span></li>\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Pleasure without Conscience </span></li>\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Science without Humanity</span></li>\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\"> Knowledge without Character </span></li>\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Politics without Principle </span></li>\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Commerce without Morality </span></li>\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Worship without Sacrifice</span></li>\n</ul>\n<span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Which one resonates with you and why?\n</span>','Mahatma\'s Seven Deadly Sins','','inherit','open','open','','726-revision','','','2011-10-18 16:31:18','2011-10-18 23:31:18','',726,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/726-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(729,1,'2011-10-18 17:00:25','2011-10-19 00:00:25','<span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Mohandas Gandhi, one of the most influential figures in modern history considered these seven issues to be perilous to humanity.</span></span>\n<ul>\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Wealth without Work </span></li>\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Pleasure without Conscience </span></li>\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Science without Humanity</span></li>\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\"> Knowledge without Character </span></li>\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Politics without Principle </span></li>\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Commerce without Morality </span></li>\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Worship without Sacrifice</span></li>\n</ul>\n<span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">About ten years ago there was a huge \"work/life balance\" movement in the business space that came out of Silicon Valley. It created a great conversation for those who would become slaves to the Internet bubble, and it\'s promises of millions if you just worked 60 hours work weeks.  And then there was the counterbalance movement, which said balance is a myth that is impossible. The two movements were started arguably in the same space, at a magazine called <a href=\"http://www.fastcompany.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Fast Company</a>.\n\nSo when I saw this list I thought back to those two movements. And what I\'ve come to believe is that balance can only be achieved by bringing mindfulness to each category but in different seasons of life. So right now I might be working on wealth, while science takes a back seat. I don\'t forget about science. I just recognize that my energy needs to be focused. And if I never return to it, I\'m out of balance.Which one resonates with you and why?\n</span>','Mahatma\'s Seven Deadly Sins','','inherit','open','open','','726-autosave','','','2011-10-18 17:00:25','2011-10-19 00:00:25','',726,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/726-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(730,1,'2011-10-18 16:38:50','2011-10-18 23:38:50','<span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Mohandas Gandhi, one of the most influential figures in modern history considered these seven issues to be perilous to humanity.</span></span>\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Wealth without Work </span></li>\r\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Pleasure without Conscience </span></li>\r\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Science without Humanity</span></li>\r\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\"> Knowledge without Character </span></li>\r\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Politics without Principle </span></li>\r\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Commerce without Morality </span></li>\r\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Worship without Sacrifice</span></li>\r\n</ul>\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Which one resonates with you and why?\r\n</span>','Mahatma\'s Seven Deadly Sins','','inherit','open','open','','726-revision-2','','','2011-10-18 16:38:50','2011-10-18 23:38:50','',726,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/726-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(732,62,'2011-10-18 16:58:58','2011-10-18 23:58:58','How a man entrusted with the cure of souls of the UK city of Manchester responded when there was a riot on Easter Sunday in the local prison. ','The BISHOP with STRANGEWAYS','Living faith during a prison riot','inherit','open','open','','the-bishop-with-strangeways','','','2011-10-18 16:58:58','2011-10-18 23:58:58','',0,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/The-Bishop-with-Strangeways.doc',0,'attachment','application/msword',0),(733,1,'2011-10-18 16:42:21','2011-10-18 23:42:21','<span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Mohandas Gandhi, one of the most influential figures in modern history considered these seven issues to be perilous to humanity.</span></span>\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Wealth without Work </span></li>\r\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Pleasure without Conscience </span></li>\r\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Science without Humanity</span></li>\r\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\"> Knowledge without Character </span></li>\r\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Politics without Principle </span></li>\r\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Commerce without Morality </span></li>\r\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Worship without Sacrifice</span></li>\r\n</ul>\r\n<span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Which one resonates with you and why?\r\n</span>','Mahatma\'s Seven Deadly Sins','','inherit','open','open','','726-revision-3','','','2011-10-18 16:42:21','2011-10-18 23:42:21','',726,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/726-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(734,1,'2011-10-18 16:59:21','2011-10-18 23:59:21','<span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Mohandas Gandhi, one of the most influential figures in modern history considered these seven issues to be perilous to humanity.</span></span>\n<ul>\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Wealth without Work </span></li>\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Pleasure without Conscience </span></li>\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Science without Humanity</span></li>\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\"> Knowledge without Character </span></li>\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Politics without Principle </span></li>\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Commerce without Morality </span></li>\n	<li><span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Worship without Sacrifice</span></li>\n</ul>\n<span style=\"font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;\">Which one resonates with you and why?\n</span>','Mahatma\'s Seven Deadly Sins','','inherit','open','open','','726-revision-4','','','2011-10-18 16:59:21','2011-10-18 23:59:21','',726,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/726-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(735,1,'2011-10-18 16:25:37','2011-10-18 23:25:37','CNN Deputy Political Director Paul Steinhauser suggests something interesting.\r\n<blockquote>\"In a city where fortunes are won and lost, there\'s a safe bet about Tuesday night\'s CNN Western Republican debate: It will influence the race for the GOP presidential nomination.\"</blockquote>\r\nMy question is this: Do debates really matter?  Do they influence us in a way that makes us really choose, or are they fodder for the masses?','Do The Debates Really Matter','','inherit','open','open','','719-revision-5','','','2011-10-18 16:25:37','2011-10-18 23:25:37','',719,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/719-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(1055,38,'2011-10-23 19:43:16','2011-10-24 02:43:16','<em>This is post number two in my series about the six reasons why I left the church based off of the article \"<a href=\"http://www.barna.org/teens-next-gen-articles/528-six-reasons-young-christians-leave-church\" target=\"_blank\">Six Reasons Young Christians Leave Church</a>\" by the Barna Group.</em>\r\n\r\n<strong>Reason #3: “They wrestle with the exclusive nature of Christianity.”</strong>\r\n<blockquote>\"I came to the point that I realized my theology condemns 92% of the world’s population. There\'s something wrong with that.\"</blockquote>\r\nThis is a quote by <a href=\"http://crystalstmarielewis.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Crystal St. Lewis</a>, who I had a chance to hear speak at <a href=\"http://www.outlawpreachers.com/\" target=\"_blank\">The Outlaw Preachers</a> (re)Union 2011. With my strict Baptist upbringing it was more like 99% because anyone outside of our church was probably going to the bad place downstairs.\r\n\r\nFor me, the exclusive nature of the church did not come into conflict with reality in relation to the path of salvation (at least not really, more about this later); it showed up in the willful perpetuation of ignorance in regards to other religions, the denial of other denominations being in the family, and the indignation that flares up when you talk about finding beauty in other religions. Here is just a small slice of how other denominations and religions were <strong>stereotyped </strong>and <strong>viewed incorrectly </strong>by my particular sect:\r\n\r\n<strong>Presbyterians </strong>– Liturgy? Pfffft. They’re doing it wrong. All that repetition means empty hearts and empty prayers.\r\n\r\n<strong>Lutherans </strong>– They don’t drink coffee. It may as well be a different religion.\r\n\r\n<strong>Methodists </strong>– No one really talked about them, but we’re sure they’re weird too.\r\n\r\n<strong>Church of God</strong> – Female pastors!\r\n\r\n<strong>Episcopal </strong>– They like the gays. (This denomination was particularly deemed dangerous, though no one was ever any more specific than “They’re into some weird stuff.”)\r\n\r\n<strong>Pentecostal </strong>– They speak in tongues and like to dance. Do you need any more evidence?\r\n\r\n<strong>Non-denomination churches</strong> – They can’t pick sides so they try to make everyone happy.\r\n\r\n<strong>Catholics </strong>– “You do know they worship Mary, right?” And all they want to do is buy indulgences so they can sin. (Barely considered to be part of the Protestant branch. Get thee out of my Christian tree!)\r\n\r\n<strong>Seventh Day Adventists</strong> – Something about a Watchtower and they think they all can become god or something.\r\n\r\n<strong>Mormons </strong>– Salt Lake City, baby! They like to marry multiple women and the guy who wrote The Book or Mormon was a crazy.\r\n\r\n<strong>Anglicans </strong>– Something to do with the old church. And they’re more or less Catholics.\r\n\r\n<strong>Jews </strong>– We only like the Messianic ones. All the others only live by a bunch of rules and don’t love God, because you can’t love God through rules. (Please, let us all take a moment to guffaw or belly laugh at the incredible irony here!)\r\n\r\n<strong>Muslims </strong>– They worship Muhammad and are against everything you know and love.\r\n\r\n<strong>Wiccans </strong>– WITCHCRAFT.\r\n\r\n<strong>Buddhists </strong>– They worship the jolly fat guy statues in restaurants. Maybe something about reincarnation? The Dalai Lama is offensive anyway.\r\n\r\n<strong>Hindus </strong>– Reincarnation. Need I say more? Also all the weird, thousands of gods thing. Jesus doesn’t like that.\r\n\r\n<strong>Agnostics </strong>– Are in denial. They have that God-shaped hole but don’t want to commit.\r\n\r\n<strong>Atheists </strong>– Are angry people who just refuse to see the logic in our beliefs and don\'t want to give up control.\r\n\r\nSo even though there is a huge group of self-identifying group of Christians in the world, and even though most of the Protestant denominations are nearly identical in doctrine and differ only in a few preferences, we can safely knock about 80% of them out of the running for Heaven because they aren’t Baptists? There is something desperately wrong when we are knocking out members of our own group to feel more secure in our own salvation. (Survivor, anyone?)\r\n\r\nThe ignorance of other cultures and belief systems around me did a lot of damage. Not only had I condensed the Holy World down to a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of the people on this planet, but I unfairly discriminated against people of other religions because of my ignorance. Once I left the church I stopped being <em>afraid </em>of humanity and I started to see how absolutely colorful, diverse, and beautiful it is.\r\n\r\nPerhaps you can identify with this. Maybe when you read one of the names of the groups above your stomach turns just a little bit. What you need to remember is their beliefs are as sacred to them as yours are to you. When it comes down to it, they are human and they want the same basic things you want out of life. You might be surprised if you take the opportunity to learn a little bit about one of the groups you have presuppositions about.\r\n\r\nIt\'s easy: go rent/buy a book by someone who is of a different faith. “<a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Muslim-Next-Door-Quran-Media/dp/0974524565/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1318469568&amp;sr=8-1-fkmr0\" target=\"_blank\">The Muslim Next Door: The Qur\'an, the Media, and That Veil Thing</a>” by Sumbul Ali-Karamali, is a great example.  Maybe find <a href=\"http://ramblingtaoist.blogspot.com/\" target=\"_blank\">a blogger</a> and read what they have to say from personal experience about their faith. If you\'re really courageous, send them an email and talk with them about it! Watch <a href=\"http://www.netflix.com/Movie/A-Life-Apart-Hasidism-in-America/70018988?strkid=1451695563_0_0&amp;lnkctr=srchrd-sr&amp;strackid=73420d99b57c05b6_0_srl&amp;trkid=222336\" target=\"_blank\">a documentary</a>. You don’t have to believe it, you don’t have to like it, and you don’t have to condone it. But hearing other people’s stories might help you understand someone else’s true heart and help you find nuggets of truth in other people, other denominations, and other faiths.\r\n\r\nOpen your heart and start to see people how Jesus sees them: incredible, intricate, amazing people with beautiful hearts. Fall in love with humanity.','Where the Church Lost Me: Part II','','inherit','open','open','','1045-revision-7','','','2011-10-23 19:43:16','2011-10-24 02:43:16','',1045,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/23/1045-revision-7/',0,'revision','',0),(740,1,'2011-10-19 07:53:40','2011-10-19 14:53:40','','Provoketive Writer\'s','','inherit','open','open','','provoketive-writers','','','2011-10-19 07:53:40','2011-10-19 14:53:40','',0,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Provoketive-Writers.doc',0,'attachment','application/msword',0),(741,1,'2011-10-18 14:21:03','2011-10-18 21:21:03','There are two opportunities to advertise on Provoketive: Events and Banner Advertising.  All proceeds go towards creating this rich space of conversation and community.\r\n<h3>Events Listings</h3>\r\nProvoketive lists conferences and events under the main heading of Events.  To advertise your event is a $25 dollar listing fee.  That\'s it.\r\n<h3>Banner Advertising</h3>\r\nProvoketive Magazine attracts educated adults with an interest in life, culture, justice, spirituality, and current events. Banner advertising runs for 1 month as is available on a space availability basis.  There are two positions in the magazine: front page and all sub-pages.  Sub-page ads run in one of four main categories: life, faith, justice, culture.\r\n<h3>Large Advertisements: 630x125</h3>\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/630-Ad-Sample.png\"><img title=\"630 Ad Sample\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/630-Ad-Sample.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"630\" height=\"125\" /></a>\r\n\r\nLarge Advertisement Front Page Top: 630x125 = $150\r\n\r\nLarge Advertisement Front Page Bottom: 630x125 = $125\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n<h3>Small Advertisements: 220x125</h3>\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/220-Sample-Ad.png\"><img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-641\" title=\"220 Sample Ad\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/220-Sample-Ad.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"220\" height=\"125\" /></a>\r\n\r\nSmall Advertisement Front Page Top: 220x125 = $75\r\n\r\nSmall Advertisement Front Page Middle: 220x125 = $60\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n<h3>Sub Page Advertisements: 300x250</h3>\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/300-Ad-Sample.png\"><img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-687\" title=\"300 Ad Sample\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/300-Ad-Sample.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"250\" /></a>\r\n\r\nSub Page Advertisement Top: 300x250 = $75\r\n\r\nSub Page Advertisement Middle: 300x250 = $60\r\n\r\nSub Page Advertisement Bottom: 300x250 = $50\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n<h3>Buying Ads</h3>\r\nTo purchase advertising, please contact Jonathan using the form below.  Someone will contact you within one business day.\r\n\r\n[contact-form] [contact-field label=\"Name\" type=\"name\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Email\" type=\"email\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Ad Space You Want To Buy\" type=\"url\" required=\"true\" /] [contact-field label=\"Comment\" type=\"textarea\" required=\"true\" /] [/contact-form]\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Advertise on Provoketive','','inherit','open','open','','29-revision-11','','','2011-10-18 14:21:03','2011-10-18 21:21:03','',29,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/29-revision-11/',0,'revision','',0),(742,1,'2011-10-19 08:16:35','2011-10-19 15:16:35','The story of Apple Computer is one of legend.  Steve Jobs has created one of the greatest cult followings of any kind.  To get a taste of that, stand outside of an Apple store the day of a product launch.  It\'s like a rock concert.\r\n\r\nBut with the passing of Steve Jobs, Apple stands at a pivotal point in its history.  Can it continue to thrive without its mastermind?  Can it continue to create great products with the wizard?\r\n\r\nBloomberg Magazine suggests yes.  They are <a href=\"http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/scott-forstall-the-sorcerers-apprentice-at-apple-10122011.html\" target=\"_blank\">suggesting</a> Scott Forstall is the next guy on the horizon.\r\n\r\nDo you agree?','Can Apple Thrive?','','publish','open','open','','can-apple-thrive','','','2011-10-19 08:16:53','2011-10-19 15:16:53','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=742',0,'post','',0),(743,1,'2011-10-19 08:12:06','2011-10-19 15:12:06','','scott_forstall','','inherit','open','open','','scott_forstall','','','2011-10-19 08:12:06','2011-10-19 15:12:06','',742,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/scott_forstall.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(744,1,'2011-10-19 08:16:35','2011-10-19 15:16:35','The story of Apple Computer is one of legend.  Steve Jobs has created one of the greatest cult followings of any kind.  To get a taste of that, stand outside of an Apple store the day of a product launch.  It\'s like a rock concert.\n\nBut with the passing of Steve Jobs, Apple stands at a pivotal point in its history.  Can it continue to thrive without it\'s mastermind?  Can it continue to create great products with the wizard?\n\nBloomberg Magazine suggests yes.  They are <a href=\"http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/scott-forstall-the-sorcerers-apprentice-at-apple-10122011.html\" target=\"_blank\">suggesting</a> Scott Forstall is the next guy on the horizon.\n\nDo you agree?','Can Apple Thrive?','','inherit','open','open','','742-revision','','','2011-10-19 08:16:35','2011-10-19 15:16:35','',742,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/742-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(745,1,'2011-10-19 08:16:35','2011-10-19 15:16:35','The story of Apple Computer is one of legend.  Steve Jobs has created one of the greatest cult followings of any kind.  To get a taste of that, stand outside of an Apple store the day of a product launch.  It\'s like a rock concert.\r\n\r\nBut with the passing of Steve Jobs, Apple stands at a pivotal point in its history.  Can it continue to thrive without it\'s mastermind?  Can it continue to create great products with the wizard?\r\n\r\nBloomberg Magazine suggests yes.  They are <a href=\"http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/scott-forstall-the-sorcerers-apprentice-at-apple-10122011.html\" target=\"_blank\">suggesting</a> Scott Forstall is the next guy on the horizon.\r\n\r\nDo you agree?','Can Apple Thrive?','','inherit','open','open','','742-revision-2','','','2011-10-19 08:16:35','2011-10-19 15:16:35','',742,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/742-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(746,1,'2011-10-19 08:27:49','2011-10-19 15:27:49','It\'s hard to wonder how grown men can\'t seem to find out how to share 9 billion dollars.  <a href=\"http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/7118714/nba-players-owners-meet-15-plus-hours-mediator\" target=\"_blank\">After 16 hours of negotiations</a>, the owners, players and reps still haven\'t figured it out.  With the NBA lockout now threatening the loss of the entire season, do you even care anymore?  At what point does the public simply walk away?  And if the season does get cancelled, will you come back to watch?','Is Greed Ruining Sports?','','publish','open','open','','is-greed-ruining-sports','','','2011-10-19 08:27:49','2011-10-19 15:27:49','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=746',0,'post','',0),(747,1,'2011-10-19 08:23:41','2011-10-19 15:23:41','','nba_lockout','','inherit','open','open','','nba_lockout','','','2011-10-19 08:23:41','2011-10-19 15:23:41','',746,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/nba_lockout.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(748,1,'2011-10-19 08:27:35','2011-10-19 15:27:35','It\'s hard to wonder how grown men can\'t seem to find out how to share 9 billion dollars.  <a href=\"http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/7118714/nba-players-owners-meet-15-plus-hours-mediator\" target=\"_blank\">After 16 hours of negotiations</a>, the owners, players and reps still haven\'t figured it out.  With the NBA lockout now threatening the loss of the entire season, do you even care anymore?  At what point does the public simply walk away?  And if the','Is Greed Ruining Sports?','','inherit','open','open','','746-revision','','','2011-10-19 08:27:35','2011-10-19 15:27:35','',746,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/746-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(749,1,'2011-10-19 08:28:54','2011-10-19 15:28:54','It\'s hard to wonder how grown men can\'t seem to find out how to share 9 billion dollars.  <a href=\"http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/7118714/nba-players-owners-meet-15-plus-hours-mediator\" target=\"_blank\">After 16 hours of negotiations</a>, the owners, players and reps still haven\'t figured it out.  With the NBA lockout now threatening the loss of the entire season, do you even care anymore?  At what point does the public simply walk away?  And if the season does get cancelled, will you come back to watch?','Is Greed Ruining Sports?','','inherit','open','open','','746-autosave','','','2011-10-19 08:28:54','2011-10-19 15:28:54','',746,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/746-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(751,1,'2011-10-19 10:18:28','2011-10-19 17:18:28','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/LyePCRkq620\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\n\n&nbsp;','The World Economy In 3 Minutes','','inherit','open','open','','750-revision','','','2011-10-19 10:18:28','2011-10-19 17:18:28','',750,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/750-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(752,1,'2011-10-23 14:26:02','2011-10-23 21:26:02','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/LyePCRkq620\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"254\"></iframe>\n\nHow do you feel when he says the US Economy is owned by China?\n\n&nbsp;','The World Economy In 3 Minutes','','inherit','open','open','','750-autosave','','','2011-10-23 14:26:02','2011-10-23 21:26:02','',750,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/750-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(753,1,'2011-10-19 10:24:25','2011-10-19 17:24:25','','world_economy','','inherit','open','open','','world_economy','','','2011-10-19 10:24:25','2011-10-19 17:24:25','',750,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/world_economy.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(754,1,'2011-10-19 10:18:43','2011-10-19 17:18:43','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/LyePCRkq620\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','The World Economy In 3 Minutes','','inherit','open','open','','750-revision-2','','','2011-10-19 10:18:43','2011-10-19 17:18:43','',750,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/750-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(755,1,'2011-10-19 10:24:40','2011-10-19 17:24:40','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/LyePCRkq620\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','The World Economy In 3 Minutes','','inherit','open','open','','750-revision-3','','','2011-10-19 10:24:40','2011-10-19 17:24:40','',750,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/750-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(756,1,'2011-10-19 10:25:42','2011-10-19 17:25:42','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/LyePCRkq620\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"254\"></iframe>\r\n\r\nHow do you feel when he says the US Economy is owned by China?\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','The World Economy In 3 Minutes','','inherit','open','open','','750-revision-4','','','2011-10-19 10:25:42','2011-10-19 17:25:42','',750,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/750-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(1252,1,'2011-10-26 13:00:04','2011-10-26 20:00:04','<a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banksy\" target=\"_blank\">Banksy</a> has such a beautiful way of saying the obscene.','Banksy On Violence','','publish','open','open','','banksy-on-violence','','','2011-10-26 15:45:47','2011-10-26 22:45:47','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=1252',0,'post','',0),(758,1,'2011-10-19 11:44:07','2011-10-19 18:44:07','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/4gFJfCUun8s\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"339\"></iframe>\r\n\r\nChris Hedges, a Pulitzer Prize winning author shares some radical ideas.  He even calls the Tea Part classic fascism. What do you think?','Is Civil Disobedience The Only Hope?','','publish','open','open','','is-civil-disobedience-the-only-hope','','','2011-10-22 23:44:34','2011-10-23 06:44:34','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=758',0,'post','',0),(759,1,'2011-10-19 11:43:48','2011-10-19 18:43:48','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/4gFJfCUun8s\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"339\"></iframe>\n\nWhat do you think?','Is Civil Disobedience The Only Hope?','','inherit','open','open','','758-revision','','','2011-10-19 11:43:48','2011-10-19 18:43:48','',758,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/758-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(760,1,'2011-10-19 11:46:13','2011-10-19 18:46:13','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/4gFJfCUun8s\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"339\"></iframe>\n\nChris Hedges, a Pulitzer Prize winning author shares some radical ideas.  He even calls the Tea Part classic fascism. What do you think?','Is Civil Disobedience The Only Hope?','','inherit','open','open','','758-autosave','','','2011-10-19 11:46:13','2011-10-19 18:46:13','',758,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/758-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(761,1,'2011-10-19 11:48:38','2011-10-19 18:48:38','','Chris_Hedges','','inherit','open','open','','chris_hedges','','','2011-10-19 11:48:38','2011-10-19 18:48:38','',758,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Chris_Hedges.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(762,1,'2011-10-19 11:44:07','2011-10-19 18:44:07','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/4gFJfCUun8s\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"339\"></iframe>\r\n\r\nWhat do you think?','Is Civil Disobedience The Only Hope?','','inherit','open','open','','758-revision-2','','','2011-10-19 11:44:07','2011-10-19 18:44:07','',758,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/758-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(763,1,'2011-10-19 11:48:54','2011-10-19 18:48:54','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/4gFJfCUun8s\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"339\"></iframe>\r\n\r\nChris Hedges, a Pulitzer Prize winning author shares some radical ideas.  He even calls the Tea Part classic fascism. What do you think?','Is Civil Disobedience The Only Hope?','','inherit','open','open','','758-revision-3','','','2011-10-19 11:48:54','2011-10-19 18:48:54','',758,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/758-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(764,1,'2011-10-19 13:02:50','2011-10-19 20:02:50','<script src=\"http://player.ooyala.com/player.js?deepLinkEmbedCode=RzcWF3Mjp7kS4xrVHuR3sff9Dat3jxeH&video_pcode=11amo6qGw2oucN78pR-BYbDpCESk&width=500&embedCode=RzcWF3Mjp7kS4xrVHuR3sff9Dat3jxeH&height=280\"></script>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://Groupon.com\" target=\"_blank\">Groupon.com</a> is about to go public.&nbsp; But does it work?&nbsp; Tech Crunch has an interesting video that profiles three companies who have used the service.  It\'s interesting to watch the customers talk about their experience.  The cupcake guy had to learn how to maximize the coupon.  And in the restaurants case, they actually lost money.\r\n\r\nIs this good business?','Does Groupon Work?','','publish','open','open','','does-groupon-work','','','2011-10-19 13:04:53','2011-10-19 20:04:53','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=764',0,'post','',0),(765,1,'2011-10-19 12:51:42','2011-10-19 19:51:42','','Group_3x','','inherit','open','open','','group_3x','','','2011-10-19 12:51:42','2011-10-19 19:51:42','',764,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Group_3x.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(766,1,'2011-10-19 12:54:09','2011-10-19 19:54:09','<script src=\"http://player.ooyala.com/player.js?deepLinkEmbedCode=RzcWF3Mjp7kS4xrVHuR3sff9Dat3jxeH&video_pcode=11amo6qGw2oucN78pR-BYbDpCESk&width=640&embedCode=RzcWF3Mjp7kS4xrVHuR3sff9Dat3jxeH&height=360\"></script>','Does Groupon Work?','','inherit','open','open','','764-revision','','','2011-10-19 12:54:09','2011-10-19 19:54:09','',764,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/764-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(767,1,'2011-10-19 12:55:21','2011-10-19 19:55:21','<script src=\"http://player.ooyala.com/player.js?deepLinkEmbedCode=RzcWF3Mjp7kS4xrVHuR3sff9Dat3jxeH&video_pcode=11amo6qGw2oucN78pR-BYbDpCESk&width=640&embedCode=RzcWF3Mjp7kS4xrVHuR3sff9Dat3jxeH&height=360\"></script>Groupon is about to go public.  But does it work.  Tech Crunch has an interesting video that','Does Groupon Work?','','inherit','open','open','','764-revision-2','','','2011-10-19 12:55:21','2011-10-19 19:55:21','',764,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/764-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(768,1,'2011-10-19 12:55:26','2011-10-19 19:55:26','<script src=\"http://player.ooyala.com/player.js?deepLinkEmbedCode=RzcWF3Mjp7kS4xrVHuR3sff9Dat3jxeH&video_pcode=11amo6qGw2oucN78pR-BYbDpCESk&width=640&embedCode=RzcWF3Mjp7kS4xrVHuR3sff9Dat3jxeH&height=360\"></script>\r\n\r\nGroupon is about to go public.  But does it work.  Tech Crunch has an interesting video that','Does Groupon Work?','','inherit','open','open','','764-revision-3','','','2011-10-19 12:55:26','2011-10-19 19:55:26','',764,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/764-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(769,1,'2011-10-19 12:56:21','2011-10-19 19:56:21','<script src=\"http://player.ooyala.com/player.js?deepLinkEmbedCode=RzcWF3Mjp7kS4xrVHuR3sff9Dat3jxeH&video_pcode=11amo6qGw2oucN78pR-BYbDpCESk&width=640&embedCode=RzcWF3Mjp7kS4xrVHuR3sff9Dat3jxeH&height=360\"></script>\n\nGroupon is about to go public.  But does it work.  Tech Crunch has an interesting video that','Does Groupon Work?','','inherit','open','open','','764-revision-4','','','2011-10-19 12:56:21','2011-10-19 19:56:21','',764,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/764-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(770,1,'2011-10-19 12:57:23','2011-10-19 19:57:23','<script src=\"http://player.ooyala.com/player.js?deepLinkEmbedCode=RzcWF3Mjp7kS4xrVHuR3sff9Dat3jxeH&video_pcode=11amo6qGw2oucN78pR-BYbDpCESk&width=500&embedCode=RzcWF3Mjp7kS4xrVHuR3sff9Dat3jxeH&height=280\"></script>\r\n\r\nGroupon is about to go public.  But does it work.  Tech Crunch has an interesting video that','Does Groupon Work?','','inherit','open','open','','764-revision-5','','','2011-10-19 12:57:23','2011-10-19 19:57:23','',764,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/764-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(771,1,'2011-10-19 13:02:50','2011-10-19 20:02:50','<script src=\"http://player.ooyala.com/player.js?deepLinkEmbedCode=RzcWF3Mjp7kS4xrVHuR3sff9Dat3jxeH&video_pcode=11amo6qGw2oucN78pR-BYbDpCESk&width=500&embedCode=RzcWF3Mjp7kS4xrVHuR3sff9Dat3jxeH&height=280\"></script>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://Groupon.com\" target=\"_blank\">Groupon.com</a> is about to go public.&nbsp; But does it work?&nbsp; Tech Crunch has an interesting video that profiles three companies who have used the service.  It\'s interesting to watch the customers talk about their experience.  And in the restaurants case, they actually lost money.\r\n\r\nIs this good business?','Does Groupon Work?','','inherit','open','open','','764-revision-6','','','2011-10-19 13:02:50','2011-10-19 20:02:50','',764,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/764-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(772,1,'2011-10-19 13:16:09','2011-10-19 20:16:09','Greece is really screwed up right now.  MSNBC is <a href=\"http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44955899/ns/world_news-europe/#.Tp8ubzvNu2w\" target=\"_blank\">reporting</a> that youths hurled stones and caused a riot in Central Athens today.  14 police officers were injured. If you follow the economy, you\'ll know that Greece has been a central country in so much of our economy swings in the stock market.  Everything seems to hinge on our what happens there.\r\n\r\nSo is Greece the shaping of things to come, or do you see us making it through this mess?\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Riots In Greece','','publish','open','open','','riots-in-greece','','','2011-10-19 13:16:31','2011-10-19 20:16:31','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=772',0,'post','',0),(773,1,'2011-10-19 13:12:30','2011-10-19 20:12:30','','Greece_turmoil','','inherit','open','open','','greece_turmoil','','','2011-10-19 13:12:30','2011-10-19 20:12:30','',772,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Greece_turmoil.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(774,1,'2011-10-19 13:15:15','2011-10-19 20:15:15','Greece is really screwed up right now.  MSNBC is <a href=\"http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44955899/ns/world_news-europe/#.Tp8ubzvNu2w\" target=\"_blank\">reporting</a> that youths hurled stones and caused a riot in Central Athens today.  14 police officers were injured. If you follow the economy, you\'ll know that Greece has been a central country in so much of our economy swings\n\n&nbsp;','Riots In Greece','','inherit','open','open','','772-revision','','','2011-10-19 13:15:15','2011-10-19 20:15:15','',772,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/772-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(775,1,'2011-10-19 13:16:09','2011-10-19 20:16:09','Greece is really screwed up right now.  MSNBC is <a href=\"http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44955899/ns/world_news-europe/#.Tp8ubzvNu2w\" target=\"_blank\">reporting</a> that youths hurled stones and caused a riot in Central Athens today.  14 police officers were injured. If you follow the economy, you\'ll know that Greece has been a central country in so much of our economy swings in the stock market.  Everything seems to hinge on our what happens there.\r\n\r\nSo is Greece the shaping of things to come, or do you see us making it through this mess?\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Riots In Greece','','inherit','open','open','','772-revision-2','','','2011-10-19 13:16:09','2011-10-19 20:16:09','',772,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/772-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(776,1,'2011-10-19 13:17:34','2011-10-19 20:17:34','Greece is really screwed up right now.  MSNBC is <a href=\"http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44955899/ns/world_news-europe/#.Tp8ubzvNu2w\" target=\"_blank\">reporting</a> that youths hurled stones and caused a riot in Central Athens today.  14 police officers were injured. If you follow the economy, you\'ll know that Greece has been a central country in so much of our economy swings in the stock market.  Everything seems to hinge on our what happens there.\n\nSo is Greece the shaping of things to come, or do you see us making it through this mess?\n\n&nbsp;','Riots In Greece','','inherit','open','open','','772-autosave','','','2011-10-19 13:17:34','2011-10-19 20:17:34','',772,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/772-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(777,1,'2011-10-19 13:21:35','2011-10-19 20:21:35','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/elKxgsrJFhw\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"254\"></iframe>\r\n\r\nWell know that you can\'t drop an iPhone without the glass shattering.  Duh! But what I want to know is, \"Who paid for all those iPhones?\" Oh yeah, the warranty company trying to get your business.','Drop The iPhone','','publish','open','open','','drop-the-iphone','','','2011-10-19 13:25:51','2011-10-19 20:25:51','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=777',0,'post','',0),(778,1,'2011-10-19 13:20:55','2011-10-19 20:20:55','','Drop The iPhone','','inherit','open','open','','777-revision','','','2011-10-19 13:20:55','2011-10-19 20:20:55','',777,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/777-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(779,1,'2011-10-19 13:26:57','2011-10-19 20:26:57','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/elKxgsrJFhw\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"254\"></iframe>\n\nWell know that you can\'t drop an iPhone without the glass shattering.  Duh! But what I want to know is, \"Who paid for all those iPhones?\" Oh yeah, the warranty company trying to get your business.','Drop The iPhone','','inherit','open','open','','777-autosave','','','2011-10-19 13:26:57','2011-10-19 20:26:57','',777,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/777-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(780,1,'2011-10-19 13:25:39','2011-10-19 20:25:39','','iPhone_Galaxt','','inherit','open','open','','iphone_galaxt','','','2011-10-19 13:25:39','2011-10-19 20:25:39','',777,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/iPhone_Galaxt.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(781,1,'2011-10-19 13:21:35','2011-10-19 20:21:35','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/elKxgsrJFhw\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"254\"></iframe>\r\n\r\nWhat I want to know is, \"Who paid for all those iPhones?\"','Drop The iPhone','','inherit','open','open','','777-revision-2','','','2011-10-19 13:21:35','2011-10-19 20:21:35','',777,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/777-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(1258,64,'2011-10-28 08:00:32','2011-10-28 15:00:32','<div>\r\n\r\nFeminism to me is the crazy belief that women and men are both created in God’s image and that each of us deserves a life of freedom and opportunity inside or outside the Church.\r\n\r\n</div>\r\n<strong>It began like any other day by </strong><strong>logging on to the internet, as I gratefully sipped my coffee and slowly woke up.</strong>\r\n\r\nScouring various sources, I saw a new book on women was out titled <a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2Fgp%2Fproduct%2F1414337302%2Fref%3Das_li_ss_tl%3Fie%3DUTF8%26tag%3Dhansresodevei-20%26linkCode%3Das2%26camp%3D217145%26creative%3D399373%26creativeASIN%3D1414337302&amp;h=cAQF09IvWAQHLC8jkQwJq03PMm3_t4ngP4ePDIj1gc6-nYg\" target=\"_blank\">The Resignation of Eve: What If Adam\'s Rib Is No Longer Willing to Be the Church\'s Backbone?</a> (I have to admit that is a clever title.)  It has women’s stories of their experiences in the Church written <em>by a man</em>?  Giving it very little further thought, I wrote this comment on Facebook:\r\n<blockquote>“While I find it highly ironic that it requires a man to tell these women\'s stories to in order for them to be heard, and though I have not obviously read this book since it is not yet out, still there must be something important here if he does as he alleges and has <em>listened to women</em> talk about their experience in the Church.   It seems sketchy to me though ...”</blockquote>\r\nI copied a few friends and that began the banter, then a lively discussion about women and access, why women don’t trust their own voices, why it takes a man for women’s stories to be \"heard\", how men (may) self-promote more than women, and why the only thing women are invited to write and speak on are soft topics, and we even discussed our theological grounding for our perspectives.  It was <em>much</em> more civil than many internet discussions, as several of my friends across the globe, and locally, began to discuss!\r\n\r\n<strong>But I have to go back, even further.</strong>\r\n\r\nThis story really began a few weeks ago as I sat perched on the edge of my chair, once again at the computer.  I was trying to gather my thoughts.  Sighing deeply and knowing that being on the computer was the last thing I needed.  I needed time alone.\r\n\r\n<strong>And the<em> </em><em>lack of it</em><em> </em>was weighing heavily on my spirit. </strong> I knew that what I really needed was to turn it all off, especially the technological barrage, and find – time – to – think.  And <em>not</em> time while doing last night\'s dishes, or throwing another load in, or while picking up the endless socks, books and dog toys.  <em>Not</em> time driving my son to the doctor or waiting.  Time spent on the responsibilities of home life can be a meditation, but <em>not</em> what I needed.\r\n\r\n<strong>I needed noiseless, exclusive solitary time with Yahweh.  </strong>\r\n\r\n<strong></strong>How often do we really find this kind of time? I cannot underscore how important solitary thinking time is for me spiritually and creatively.  It helps me be less impulsive.  It centers me.  It makes the anxiety, anger, and disappointments of life fade away, lacking the importance I might have given them.  My priorities sift and sort and I am more circumspect.  In that place, I find my quavering voice.\r\n\r\n<strong>Here’s what I had been thinking about.  </strong>When it all first occurred I definitely tried to ignore it.  I kept thinking how <em>obsessive</em> I was being.  I kept telling myself I was being ridiculous, absurd, unreasonable, and even disagreeable.  Doubting my own inner voice is a frequent problem that I have.  I had tried to ignore the nagging voice inside me until finally I accepted that this was not going away!\r\n\r\n<strong>I\'ve been thinking about</strong> <strong>the lack of </strong><strong><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">presence and example</span></strong><strong> of</strong> <strong>women in <em>the Church</em>.</strong><strong>  That Sunday at my church in particular, women were </strong><strong><em><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">simply spectators</span></em></strong><strong>, the audience, the bystanders, the recipients and beneficiaries.  </strong>\r\n\r\nAnd the more I thought I could not remember the last time one of the teaching pastors suggested a book they were reading written by a woman.  Women are never quoted in my church.  Female theologians or scholars are never referenced or even mentioned, probably because the pastors don’t read them.  I can\'t remember the last time, if ever, a pastor in my church has suggested or referred to or quoted a female theologian, religious author, or historian.  <em>Am I the only one that notices these things?</em>\r\n\r\n<strong><em>T</em><em>he entire thing</em><em> </em></strong><em><strong>makes me very sad</strong></em><strong>.  And so tired. <strong> I am tired of the male dominated culture on the platform, as authors, as experts, as theologians, as speakers at conferences and in the Church at large. </strong></strong>Considering women are half the church (some would say more) I do not buy the argument that there aren\'t capable women to select from, though I\'ve been told that very thing.  \"The women haven\'t risen up who have the gift of teaching.\"\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Risen up</em><em>?</em></strong>   To be honest, one would think in a service-by-gifts based church there must not<em> be</em> any qualified gifted female teachers.   I attend an EFCA church of 5,000. You do the math.\r\n\r\nI would guess that many people, but especially women, will not put themselves forward (i.e. rise up) because of self-doubt, true humility or a combination of motivations.\r\n\r\nI think it is very likely that <em>there are</em> gifted, wise articulate women who are not yet comfortable with their own voice, but have natural instincts for leadership or teaching that could be taught, mentored, helped to find their voice.  Who knows?\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Will we ever know if they are not given the opportunity? And what a loss not to hear from them!  </em></strong>\r\n\r\nI believe it harms us to rarely hear the spiritual voices of women and for me personally, it hampers my faith and my journey with Christ.  Thank God that we have the example of Jesus who took risks for women, ministered with, received from and listened to women.  He was our example of reconciliation and grace in the lives of women.  If only the church modeled their behavior toward women after Jesus. Sadly the Church is ignoring the stories of women in the Bible, and of women historically and in the Church worldwide today.  Women have been actively participating in the work of the church since its inception.  Women are missionaries, teaching in seminaries, running nonprofits and leading in higher education.  Women are writing and want to write on more than “soft or women’s issues.”  But in the Church women are still finding their voice.\r\n\r\n<strong>I have to confess that I do not want my feminist radar (that\'s what my daughter calls it) to always go off in church.</strong>  It is distracting, sometimes painful and it is utterly exhausting.  It steals some of the joy out of my spiritual life, like recently when we attended a one man show at church.  The actor introduced us to eight characters (both in the Bible and fictional) who had met Jesus.  It was powerful.  <a title=\"Curt Cloninger\" href=\"http://curtcloninger.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Curt Cloninger</a> is supremely talented.  Sadly, in the entire two and a half hour show, women were invisible – utterly missing – other than being mentioned as briefly as whores and spinsters.  I tried hard, I really did.  I used all kind of energy that night trying to forget that I was <em>the invisible woman</em> and simply experience the show.  And it worked -- almost.\r\n\r\nYes, I tire of voicing what I believe.  And I have considered asking God to take it away – this feminist awareness – to either shut it up or get me out – but for now I stay.  And I continue to work to find my voice and listen, getting those times alone so that I can have something solid to say with a circumspect and healthy heart.  I hold on tight to Jesus in those moments when I want to quit the Church.  And I consider that as long as I can think out loud on my <strong><a title=\"Logic and Imagination\" href=\"http://logicandimagination.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">blog</a></strong> and places like <strong>Provoketive</strong> and as long as I have a few people in my life that I can express my pain and rancor to, I\'ll survive, for now.\r\n\r\n<em>Photo Credit: <a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/llimaorosa/1351327769/\" target=\"_blank\">Llima Orosa</a></em>','The Voice Of The Feminine','','publish','open','open','','the-voice-of-the-feminine','','','2011-10-30 16:21:41','2011-10-30 23:21:41','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=1258',0,'post','',28),(783,1,'2011-10-19 13:33:35','2011-10-19 20:33:35','Seriously?','Bacon For Love','','publish','open','open','','bacon-for-love','','','2011-10-19 13:33:35','2011-10-19 20:33:35','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=783',0,'post','',1),(784,1,'2011-10-19 13:33:16','2011-10-19 20:33:16','','bacon','','inherit','open','open','','bacon','','','2011-10-19 13:33:16','2011-10-19 20:33:16','',783,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/bacon.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(785,1,'2011-10-19 13:33:07','2011-10-19 20:33:07','','Bacon For Love','','inherit','open','open','','783-revision','','','2011-10-19 13:33:07','2011-10-19 20:33:07','',783,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/783-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(1760,35,'2011-11-08 08:00:59','2011-11-08 16:00:59','He sat in a red chair and watched while I was raped.  I was only four, but I knew who he was.  Jesus didn’t do anything but speak into my mind, over and over, “I’m right here.  I’m not going anywhere.  You’re going to be OK.”  And I believed him as I slid into darkness from pain and suffocation.\r\n\r\nThe incest went on for years, and Jesus stayed with me, more like a stray dog than God.  He followed me into bars and hotel rooms with strangers, in and out of church, through three divorce hearings, into alcoholic blackouts.  Sometimes I appreciated his company; sometimes I just wished he would leave me alone.  Often I took him for granted, but I always knew he was there, as real as I was.\r\n\r\nAlong the way, our relationship got messed up when church told me that Jesus did things for those who believed, for those who asked in faith, for those who followed him.  I couldn’t figure out the “follow” part because we always traveled side by side.  But what about “faith”?  I had believed Jesus from the very beginning.  He did what he said he’d do:  never leave.  But what about everything else in my life?  He hadn’t stopped the rapes, kept me out of trouble, helped me get sober.  Whose fault was that?  Apparently mine.  I didn’t have enough faith or pray right or behave enough or or or.\r\n\r\nThen I heard that “All things are possible with God.”  Except for me.  It seemed like my Stray Dog God shrugged his shoulders as if to say, “Sure, I can do anything, but for you?”  Silence.  I knew I could never go to All Saints Academy.  If I got into heaven, which was questionable, my crown would come from Burger King with painted paper jewels.  And the crucifixion story – all that gore and torture made me shudder.  I’d had too much abuse for too long.  Instead of making me feel connected with a fellow sufferer, I fled in revulsion.  If being “washed in the blood of the Lamb” was required for salvation, well…..I couldn’t do that or go there.  I was already lost.  Now I had to stay lost.\r\n\r\nSo what did that make Jesus for me?  A partner in crime, like the guy at the wheel in the getaway car while I robbed the bank?  Or was he my little friend who let me play with his toys until it was time for him to go home to his Daddy?  Was Jesus on loan to me until I died and went…….where?  I didn’t know, but I was getting really pissed off.  I had a useless God on my hands whom I loved and hated at the same time, and I didn’t know what to do with him.\r\n\r\nThe day came when my years of compressed pain and anger erupted all over Jesus.  I screamed at him, wanting to hurt him as badly as I hurt, and to my complete shock, he screamed back – his love.  And that’s how I learned to pray.  We began talking, and I let him have it, trying to be as blasphemous as possible, and he just laughed and said, “Finally!  You’re being honest with me.  Come on, let’s get in the mud and fight dirty.  I love to wrestle.”  And we did, and I didn’t always win, but I always wanted another round.\r\n\r\nYou see, he wouldn’t give up on me.  What I didn’t realize was I hadn’t ever given up on him, either.  No matter what had gone wrong in my life, I was never alone, never abandoned by my God like so many other people had.  I discovered I couldn’t offend him – he hadn’t ever run off screaming or struck me by lightning, right?  And come to think of it, Jesus had done a lot for me.  I wasn’t in prison from killing someone while driving drunk.  I wasn’t dead, though I should have been.  Jesus had been working his ass off protecting me.  Why?  Because he loved me just as I was.  In fact, he made me just like I was, knowing how I’d turn out, which is totally insane.\r\n\r\nAnd then lightning really did strike – in my brain:  Jesus had been saving me all my life.  I didn’t have to get saved – I already was.  We shared a deep, personal relationship like I had with no one else.  I was loved and accepted unconditionally, which meant I didn’t have to pray right, have enough faith, act like Mother Teresa, or be someone I wasn’t.  Then lightning struck twice, and I realized it had been awhile since I’d done something self-destructive.  I was getting better at telling the truth, being kind, stuff like that.  I was starting to act like…..him.\r\n\r\nLast night we were talking outside in the carport, and I said, “I love you so much.  But what about the crucifixion?”  And Jesus said, “Don’t worry about it.  I’ve got you covered.”','What If Jesus Didn\'t Die For Me?','','publish','open','open','','what-if-jesus-didnt-die-for-me','','','2011-11-07 07:28:49','2011-11-07 15:28:49','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=1760',0,'post','',16),(787,1,'2011-10-19 15:11:19','2011-10-19 22:11:19','Click on the Image.  How does it speak to you?','Images Of Life','','publish','open','open','','images-of-life','','','2011-10-19 15:14:28','2011-10-19 22:14:28','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=787',0,'post','',0),(788,1,'2011-10-19 15:10:56','2011-10-19 22:10:56','','storm','','inherit','open','open','','storm','','','2011-10-19 15:10:56','2011-10-19 22:10:56','',787,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/storm.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(789,1,'2011-10-19 15:10:01','2011-10-19 22:10:01','','Images Of Life','','inherit','open','open','','787-revision','','','2011-10-19 15:10:01','2011-10-19 22:10:01','',787,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/787-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(790,1,'2011-10-19 15:14:26','2011-10-19 22:14:26','Click on the Image.  How does it speak to you?','Images Of Life','','inherit','open','open','','787-autosave','','','2011-10-19 15:14:26','2011-10-19 22:14:26','',787,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/787-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(791,1,'2011-10-19 15:11:19','2011-10-19 22:11:19','Click on the Image.','Images Of Life','','inherit','open','open','','787-revision-2','','','2011-10-19 15:11:19','2011-10-19 22:11:19','',787,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/787-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(792,58,'2011-10-19 15:17:25','2011-10-19 22:17:25','The subtitle for this book could have been Stories of Hope, and I don\'t think anyone would have found it ironic.\r\n\r\nNot Alone is a beautiful example of what has become a growing trend from some publishers. Gone is the idea that a sole contributor can and does know everything about a specific topic; instead, this book is community based in its authorship. It spans a wide gamut of experiences, voices, and opinions of individuals who have lived with and continue to live with clinical depression. And it is the very fact that so many different and unique people have allowed us as readers to take a peek into their often private struggles that the book finds it\'s greatest strength: proclaiming not proudly but with open arms \"You are not alone.\"\r\n\r\nAt first, the wide and sometimes jarring differences in writing styles, tones, and narration of the stories can be a little off-putting, but that is because we as readers have become adjusted to the comfortable sotto voce of a single writer sharing her or his opinion. In Not Alone, we are reminded that what one person experiences in dealing with depression is not the same as what every individual experiences. Age, gender, life experiences, sexual orientation, spiritual development - all are variables that can and do affect how we respond. A heterosexual male may not be able to fully, completely \"get\" what it\'s like to be a mother suffering from postpartum depression, yet both may be in the throes of their own versions of depression. And it is in this shared pain that they find community and common ground. Two or more are gathered in the name of hope, and they express to others the grace shown to them by the One who gives hope. In doing so, they offer help to one another to be able to emerge out of the darkness.\r\n\r\nThat is the true beauty of this project, especially for those of us as readers who may suffer from depression [raises hand]. Not Alone reminds us that for as much as we may feel we are at times, we\'re NOT alone. The title is not just a cute play on a phrase. We may suffer in a silence of our own choosing, but the authors recognize that many of us share a variation on the same theme of pain. By having the courage to speak up, to lay bare their souls and their sufferings, their accomplishments and their failures, their good days and bad ones, the family of Not Alone invites you...us...me...to join them at this table.\r\n\r\nTwo words of caution: (1) the language in this book is as authentic as the pain and frustration that some of the authors feel, and as such, it at times comes across as raw. Real. And beautiful and perfect in the freedom to share what may be offensive to some; and (2) do NOT try to read this in one sitting. Soak in the lives of the people who are sharing themselves with you. Let the reality of what you are reading take root in you.\r\n\r\nAnd if you see yourself in some ways on that printed page - know that you are not alone.','Review: Not Alone - Stories of Living With Depression','','publish','open','open','','review-not-alone-stories-of-living-with-depression','','','2011-10-19 15:17:25','2011-10-19 22:17:25','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=792',0,'post','',0),(793,1,'2011-10-19 15:16:50','2011-10-19 22:16:50','','Not_Alone_Featured_Image_Large','','inherit','open','open','','not_alone_featured_image_large','','','2011-10-19 15:16:50','2011-10-19 22:16:50','',792,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Not_Alone_Featured_Image_Large.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0);
INSERT INTO `wp_posts` VALUES (794,1,'2011-10-19 15:17:01','2011-10-19 22:17:01','The subtitle for this book could have been Stories of Hope, and I don\'t think anyone would have found it ironic.\n\nNot Alone is a beautiful example of what has become a growing trend from some publishers. Gone is the idea that a sole contributor can and does know everything about a specific topic; instead, this book is community based in its authorship. It spans a wide gamut of experiences, voices, and opinions of individuals who have lived with and continue to live with clinical depression. And it is the very fact that so many different and unique people have allowed us as readers to take a peek into their often private struggles that the book finds it\'s greatest strength: proclaiming not proudly but with open arms \"You are not alone.\"\n\nAt first, the wide and sometimes jarring differences in writing styles, tones, and narration of the stories can be a little off-putting, but that is because we as readers have become adjusted to the comfortable sotto voce of a single writer sharing her or his opinion. In Not Alone, we are reminded that what one person experiences in dealing with depression is not the same as what every individual experiences. Age, gender, life experiences, sexual orientation, spiritual development - all are variables that can and do affect how we respond. A heterosexual male may not be able to fully, completely \"get\" what it\'s like to be a mother suffering from postpartum depression, yet both may be in the throes of their own versions of depression. And it is in this shared pain that they find community and common ground. Two or more are gathered in the name of hope, and they express to others the grace shown to them by the One who gives hope. In doing so, they offer help to one another to be able to emerge out of the darkness.\n\nThat is the true beauty of this project, especially for those of us as readers who may suffer from depression [raises hand]. Not Alone reminds us that for as much as we may feel we are at times, we\'re NOT alone. The title is not just a cute play on a phrase. We may suffer in a silence of our own choosing, but the authors recognize that many of us share a variation on the same theme of pain. By having the courage to speak up, to lay bare their souls and their sufferings, their accomplishments and their failures, their good days and bad ones, the family of Not Alone invites you...us...me...to join them at this table.\n\nTwo words of caution: (1) the language in this book is as authentic as the pain and frustration that some of the authors feel, and as such, it at times comes across as raw. Real. And beautiful and perfect in the freedom to share what may be offensive to some; and (2) do NOT try to read this in one sitting. Soak in the lives of the people who are sharing themselves with you. Let the reality of what you are reading take root in you.\n\nAnd if you see yourself in some ways on that printed page - know that you are not alone.','Review: Not Alone - Stories of Living With Depression','','inherit','open','open','','792-revision','','','2011-10-19 15:17:01','2011-10-19 22:17:01','',792,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/792-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(795,1,'2011-10-19 15:18:30','2011-10-19 22:18:30','The subtitle for this book could have been Stories of Hope, and I don\'t think anyone would have found it ironic.\n\nNot Alone is a beautiful example of what has become a growing trend from some publishers. Gone is the idea that a sole contributor can and does know everything about a specific topic; instead, this book is community based in its authorship. It spans a wide gamut of experiences, voices, and opinions of individuals who have lived with and continue to live with clinical depression. And it is the very fact that so many different and unique people have allowed us as readers to take a peek into their often private struggles that the book finds it\'s greatest strength: proclaiming not proudly but with open arms \"You are not alone.\"\n\nAt first, the wide and sometimes jarring differences in writing styles, tones, and narration of the stories can be a little off-putting, but that is because we as readers have become adjusted to the comfortable sotto voce of a single writer sharing her or his opinion. In Not Alone, we are reminded that what one person experiences in dealing with depression is not the same as what every individual experiences. Age, gender, life experiences, sexual orientation, spiritual development - all are variables that can and do affect how we respond. A heterosexual male may not be able to fully, completely \"get\" what it\'s like to be a mother suffering from postpartum depression, yet both may be in the throes of their own versions of depression. And it is in this shared pain that they find community and common ground. Two or more are gathered in the name of hope, and they express to others the grace shown to them by the One who gives hope. In doing so, they offer help to one another to be able to emerge out of the darkness.\n\nThat is the true beauty of this project, especially for those of us as readers who may suffer from depression [raises hand]. Not Alone reminds us that for as much as we may feel we are at times, we\'re NOT alone. The title is not just a cute play on a phrase. We may suffer in a silence of our own choosing, but the authors recognize that many of us share a variation on the same theme of pain. By having the courage to speak up, to lay bare their souls and their sufferings, their accomplishments and their failures, their good days and bad ones, the family of Not Alone invites you...us...me...to join them at this table.\n\nTwo words of caution: (1) the language in this book is as authentic as the pain and frustration that some of the authors feel, and as such, it at times comes across as raw. Real. And beautiful and perfect in the freedom to share what may be offensive to some; and (2) do NOT try to read this in one sitting. Soak in the lives of the people who are sharing themselves with you. Let the reality of what you are reading take root in you.\n\nAnd if you see yourself in some ways on that printed page - know that you are not alone.','Review: Not Alone - Stories of Living With Depression','','inherit','open','open','','792-autosave','','','2011-10-19 15:18:30','2011-10-19 22:18:30','',792,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/792-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(796,1,'2011-10-19 15:23:56','2011-10-19 22:23:56','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/hLQl3WQQoQ0\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"284\"></iframe>\r\n\r\nWhy is this song so haunting?  The song has been on the <a href=\"http://www.billboard.com/charts/billboard-200#/album/adele/21/1517169\" target=\"_blank\">Billboard 200</a> for 33 weeks and is still #2.','Adele - Someone Like You','','publish','open','open','','adele-someone-like-you','','','2011-10-19 17:07:30','2011-10-20 00:07:30','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=796',0,'post','',6),(797,1,'2011-10-19 15:23:16','2011-10-19 22:23:16','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/hLQl3WQQoQ0\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"284\"></iframe>\n\nWhy is this song so haunting?  The song has been on the <a href=\"http://www.billboard.com/charts/billboard-200#/album/adele/21/1517169\" target=\"_blank\">Billboard 200</a> for 33 weeks and is still','Adele - Someone Like You','','inherit','open','open','','796-revision','','','2011-10-19 15:23:16','2011-10-19 22:23:16','',796,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/796-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(798,1,'2011-10-19 15:23:56','2011-10-19 22:23:56','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/hLQl3WQQoQ0\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"284\"></iframe>\r\n\r\nWhy is this song so haunting?  The song has been on the <a href=\"http://www.billboard.com/charts/billboard-200#/album/adele/21/1517169\" target=\"_blank\">Billboard 200</a> for 33 weeks and is still #2.','Adele - Someone Like You','','inherit','open','open','','796-revision-2','','','2011-10-19 15:23:56','2011-10-19 22:23:56','',796,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/796-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(799,1,'2011-10-19 15:25:20','2011-10-19 22:25:20','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/hLQl3WQQoQ0\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"284\"></iframe>\n\nWhy is this song so haunting?  The song has been on the <a href=\"http://www.billboard.com/charts/billboard-200#/album/adele/21/1517169\" target=\"_blank\">Billboard 200</a> for 33 weeks and is still #2.','Adele - Someone Like You','','inherit','open','open','','796-autosave','','','2011-10-19 15:25:20','2011-10-19 22:25:20','',796,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/796-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(800,1,'2011-10-19 16:50:34','2011-10-19 23:50:34','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/oleuD8479uM\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"254\"></iframe>\r\n\r\nAlthough the <a href=\"http://www.thismeanswarmovie.com/\" target=\"_blank\">movie</a> is NOT a remake of the classic <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spy_vs._Spy\" target=\"_blank\">Spy vs Spy comic</a>, it\'s still a great idea.  This movie looks awesome.','Spy vs Spy - This Means War','','publish','open','open','','spy-vs-spy-this-means-war','','','2011-10-19 17:01:10','2011-10-20 00:01:10','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=800',0,'post','',1),(801,1,'2011-10-19 16:49:52','2011-10-19 23:49:52','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/oleuD8479uM\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"254\"></iframe>\n\nAlthough the movie is NOT a remake of the classic Spy vs Spy comic, it\'s still a great idea.  This movie looks awesome.','Spy vs Spy - This Means War','','inherit','open','open','','800-revision','','','2011-10-19 16:49:52','2011-10-19 23:49:52','',800,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/800-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(802,1,'2011-10-19 17:02:15','2011-10-20 00:02:15','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/oleuD8479uM\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"254\"></iframe>\n\nAlthough the <a href=\"http://www.thismeanswarmovie.com/\" target=\"_blank\">movie</a> is NOT a remake of the classic <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spy_vs._Spy\" target=\"_blank\">Spy vs Spy comic</a>, it\'s still a great idea.  This movie looks awesome.','Spy vs Spy - This Means War','','inherit','open','open','','800-autosave','','','2011-10-19 17:02:15','2011-10-20 00:02:15','',800,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/800-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(803,1,'2011-10-19 16:59:55','2011-10-19 23:59:55','','this_means_war','','inherit','open','open','','this_means_war','','','2011-10-19 16:59:55','2011-10-19 23:59:55','',800,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/this_means_war.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(804,1,'2011-10-19 16:50:34','2011-10-19 23:50:34','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/oleuD8479uM\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"254\"></iframe>\r\n\r\nAlthough the movie is NOT a remake of the classic <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spy_vs._Spy\" target=\"_blank\">Spy vs Spy comic</a>, it\'s still a great idea.  This movie looks awesome.','Spy vs Spy - This Means War','','inherit','open','open','','800-revision-2','','','2011-10-19 16:50:34','2011-10-19 23:50:34','',800,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/800-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(805,1,'2011-10-19 17:07:13','2011-10-20 00:07:13','','adele','','inherit','open','open','','adele','','','2011-10-19 17:07:13','2011-10-20 00:07:13','',796,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/adele.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(806,1,'2011-10-19 15:24:15','2011-10-19 22:24:15','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/hLQl3WQQoQ0\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"284\"></iframe>\r\n\r\nWhy is this song so haunting?  The song has been on the <a href=\"http://www.billboard.com/charts/billboard-200#/album/adele/21/1517169\" target=\"_blank\">Billboard 200</a> for 33 weeks and is still #2.','Adele - Someone Like You','','inherit','open','open','','796-revision-3','','','2011-10-19 15:24:15','2011-10-19 22:24:15','',796,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/796-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(808,12,'2011-10-19 20:25:55','2011-10-20 03:25:55','A friend of mine was trying to tell me the joyful challenges he faces each day as he ministers to the Hispanic community here in rural Kentucky. My friend, Darrick, speaks no Spanish, grew up with no appreciation for Mexican heritage, and yet he feels drawn to the Mexican community to share his faith with them.\r\n\r\nThe topic arose while we were discussing the idea of “faith as community.” It hadn’t been going well for the home Protestant team that had occupied the area in local Baptist fellowships for over 150 years. Don’t get me wrong. I’m a card-carrying Southern Baptist, but through many dangers, toils and snares, I’m beginning to understand the difference between what many churches are doing and true community.\r\n\r\nLet me move back for a moment. I remember the heralded days of my youth in the Southern Baptist Church. Sunday school in the morning, worship after, Mom’s roast for lunch, a nice nap then off for discipleship at 5:00 and Sunday night service. Return on Wednesday for prayer meeting or youth activities and you’ll discover you’re a well-rounded Southern Baptist. We called it “good Christian fellowship” and as time moved on and semantics changed, we called it “community.”\r\n\r\nI learned very quickly when I became a pastor that programs, activities, and pew sitting do not transform a congregation into a true Christian community.\r\n\r\nBut please don’t judge. This can happen in any non-denominational or denominational structure. Anytime we place our hopes into a program to develop true spirituality or community, we’ve failed. That is not to say that a program cannot be used to encourage it, but if it used as a substitute for it, it ends up being a bland sacchariny failure.\r\n\r\nThe result is we are left with churches that are a perfect reflection of our culture. We have Wal-Mart for our one stop shopping needs, Old Navy for our discount clothing needs, Blockbuster for our movie rentals – and on Sunday we can stop in and consume God. When we’re done, we can leave him there until we need him again the following week.\r\n\r\nWe have become a society that consumes God. If we like a church that meets our needs, we stick around. If it fails us, we shop around. When we leave church and didn’t like it, we hear ourselves say, “I didn’t really get anything out of that today.”\r\n\r\nWe are slowly abandoning the community element and the lifeblood of the church – the body of Christ.\r\n\r\nIt’s easy to be an internet tough guy and point out a problem. What can be done about this program oriented culture where millions are entering church to be one-stop shoppers to take their required piece of God to survive?\r\n\r\nSadly, there are probably many who view church as just as important each week as their trip to Wal-Mart. Christ demands that we lay everything down in pursuit of Him. He calls for serious disciples with sold out hearts. In return, He gives us His life, His love, His heart.\r\n\r\nMy friend Darrick spoke of the way the Hispanic community is a true community. When they go to church on Sunday, it is simply an extension of the way they have been meeting with one another all week. Each family is concerned with each other all week, knows of personal needs, and always has time for one another. Going to church is not a day where everyone catches up with the events of the week. It is a day of worship and spiritual renewal for the community.\r\n\r\nHopefully we can change the view we have of our church attendance. Too often, we see ourselves going into the church on Sunday for a service. What if we were to view ourselves as a spiritual community leaving the church, being the church and remaining the church all week?','Consuming God','','publish','open','open','','consuming-god','','','2011-10-19 20:25:55','2011-10-20 03:25:55','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=808',0,'post','',1),(809,12,'2011-10-19 18:33:08','2011-10-20 01:33:08','A friend of mine was trying to tell me the joyful challenges he faces each day as he ministers to the Hispanic community here in rural Kentucky. My friend, Darrick, speaks no Spanish, grew up with no appreciation for Mexican heritage, and yet he feels drawn to the Mexican community to share his faith with them.\n\nThe topic arose while we were discussing the idea of “faith as community.” It hadn’t been going well for the home Protestant team that had been occupying the area in local Baptist fellowships for over 150 years. Don’t get me wrong. I’m a card carrying Southern Baptist, but through many dangers, toils and snares, I’m beginning to understand the difference between what many churches are doing and true community.\n\nLet me move back for a moment. I remember the heralded days of my youth in the Southern Baptist Church. Sunday school in the morning, worship after, Mom’s roast for lunch, a nice nap then off for discipleship at 5:00 and Sunday night service. Return on Wednesday for prayer meeting or youth activites and you’ll discover you’re a well rounded Southern Baptist. We called it “good Christian fellowship” and as time moved on and semantics changed, we called it “community.”\n\nI learned very quickly when I became a pastor that programs, activities, and pew sitting do not transform a congregation into a true Christian community.\n\nBut please don’t judge. This can happen in any non-denominational or denominational structure. Anytime we place our hopes into a program to develop true spirituality or community, we’ve failed. That is not to say that a program cannot be used to encourage it, but if it used as a substitute for it, it ends up being a bland sacchariny failure.\n\nThe result is we are left with churches that are a perfect reflection of our culture. We have Wal-Mart for our one stop shopping needs, Old Navy for our discount clothing needs, Blockbuster for our movie rentals – and on Sunday we can stop in and consume God. When we’re done, we can leave him there until we need him again the following week.\n\nWe have become a society that consumes God. If we like a church that meets our needs, we stick around. If it fails us, we shop around. When we leave church and didn’t like it, we hear ourselves say, “I didn’t really get anything out of that today.”\n\nWe are slowly abandoning the community element and the lifeblood of the church – the body of Christ.\n\nIt’s easy to be an internet tough guy and point out a problem. What can be done about this program oriented culture where millions are entering church to be one-stop shoppers to take their required piece of God to survive?\n\nSadly, there are probably many who view church as just as important each week as their trip to Wal-Mart. Christ demands that we lay everything down in pursuit of Him. He calls for serious disciples with sold out hearts. In return, He gives us His life, His love, His heart.\n\nMy friend Darrick spoke of the way the Hispanic community is a true community. When they go to church on Sunday, it is simply an extension of the way they have been meeting with one another all week. Each family is concerned with each other all week, knows of personal needs, and always has time for one another. Going to church is not a day where everyone catches up with the events of the week. It is a day of worship and spiritual renewal for the community.\n\nHopefully we can change the view we have of our church attendance. Too often, we see ourselves going into the church on Sunday for a service. What if we were to view ourselves as a spiritual community leaving the church, being the church and remaining the church all week?','Consuming God','','inherit','open','open','','808-revision','','','2011-10-19 18:33:08','2011-10-20 01:33:08','',808,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/808-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(810,12,'2011-10-19 18:40:47','2011-10-20 01:40:47','','wmch','','inherit','open','open','','wmch','','','2011-10-19 18:40:47','2011-10-20 01:40:47','',808,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/wmch.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(811,12,'2011-10-19 18:41:23','2011-10-20 01:41:23','','wmch','','inherit','open','open','','wmch-2','','','2011-10-19 18:41:23','2011-10-20 01:41:23','',808,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/wmch1.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(812,12,'2011-10-19 18:45:19','2011-10-20 01:45:19','<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/wmch1.jpg\"><img class=\"size-medium wp-image-811 alignleft\" style=\"margin-left: 6px;margin-right: 6px\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/wmch1-300x244.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"251\" height=\"204\" /></a>A friend of mine was trying to tell me the joyful challenges he faces each day as he ministers to the Hispanic community here in rural Kentucky. My friend, Darrick, speaks no Spanish, grew up with no appreciation for Mexican heritage, and yet he feels drawn to the Mexican community to share his faith with them.\n\nThe topic arose while we were discussing the idea of “faith as community.” It hadn’t been going well for the home Protestant team that had been occupying the area in local Baptist fellowships for over 150 years. Don’t get me wrong. I’m a card carrying Southern Baptist, but through many dangers, toils and snares, I’m beginning to understand the difference between what many churches are doing and true community.\n\nLet me move back for a moment. I remember the heralded days of my youth in the Southern Baptist Church. Sunday school in the morning, worship after, Mom’s roast for lunch, a nice nap then off for discipleship at 5:00 and Sunday night service. Return on Wednesday for prayer meeting or youth activities and you’ll discover you’re a well rounded Southern Baptist. We called it “good Christian fellowship” and as time moved on and semantics changed, we called it “community.”\n\nI learned very quickly when I became a pastor that programs, activities, and pew sitting do not transform a congregation into a true Christian community.\n\nBut please don’t judge. This can happen in any non-denominational or denominational structure. Anytime we place our hopes into a program to develop true spirituality or community, we’ve failed. That is not to say that a program cannot be used to encourage it, but if it used as a substitute for it, it ends up being a bland sacchariny failure.\n\nThe result is we are left with churches that are a perfect reflection of our culture. We have Wal-Mart for our one stop shopping needs, Old Navy for our discount clothing needs, Blockbuster for our movie rentals – and on Sunday we can stop in and consume God. When we’re done, we can leave him there until we need him again the following week.\n\nWe have become a society that consumes God. If we like a church that meets our needs, we stick around. If it fails us, we shop around. When we leave church and didn’t like it, we hear ourselves say, “I didn’t really get anything out of that today.”\n\nWe are slowly abandoning the community element and the lifeblood of the church – the body of Christ.\n\nIt’s easy to be an internet tough guy and point out a problem. What can be done about this program oriented culture where millions are entering church to be one-stop shoppers to take their required piece of God to survive?\n\nSadly, there are probably many who view church as just as important each week as their trip to Wal-Mart. Christ demands that we lay everything down in pursuit of Him. He calls for serious disciples with sold out hearts. In return, He gives us His life, His love, His heart.\n\nMy friend Darrick spoke of the way the Hispanic community is a true community. When they go to church on Sunday, it is simply an extension of the way they have been meeting with one another all week. Each family is concerned with each other all week, knows of personal needs, and always has time for one another. Going to church is not a day where everyone catches up with the events of the week. It is a day of worship and spiritual renewal for the community.\n\nHopefully we can change the view we have of our church attendance. Too often, we see ourselves going into the church on Sunday for a service. What if we were to view ourselves as a spiritual community leaving the church, being the church and remaining the church all week?','Consuming God','','inherit','open','open','','808-revision-2','','','2011-10-19 18:45:19','2011-10-20 01:45:19','',808,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/808-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(822,65,'2011-10-20 08:38:24','2011-10-20 15:38:24','<div>\r\n\r\nThere are human consequences when we reduce government funding, therefore it is incumbent for us to inspire and encourage private citizens and communities to create ways to bear one another\'s burdens.\r\n\r\nIn our country, there are many programs that exist to provide for the health, welfare and education of citizens that could be done by its citizens on a local level and create a far-reaching effect for generations to come. Federal programs exist for education, employment, medicine, housing development and transportation. While well-meaning, these programs create two negative consequences: 1) The drive to be creative is diminished and 2) Persons become dependent on an institution; namely government which was never intended to provide for the 100% needs of an individual or family.\r\n\r\nPrograms, whether on a local, state or national level, impact people on a daily basis. These are flesh and blood men and women who are either fighting for the \"American Dream,\" or who are taking advantage of these said programs. Therefore in our urging for the reduction of programs that are funded with our tax dollars we must remember that as those dollars are removed, men, women and children are impacted.\r\n\r\nThe Department of Education\'s mission is to \"promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access.\"\r\n\r\nAccording to Whitehouse.gov and the FY2012 Budget, the Department of Education requested $77.4 Billion dollars. This makes up 2.77% of the total budget for the United States. In this budget 150 million dollars would be invested into what is called Promise Neighborhoods which is designed \"to support effective community services, strong family supports, and rigorous comprehensive education reforms to improve the educational and life outcomes for children and youth in high-need communities.\"\r\n\r\nCan we consider for a moment this program of improving neighborhoods through community services, strong families, and educational improvement and life outcomes? Ask yourself, \"Who is better equipped to address the needs in your community? What resources are currently available in my community to support and improve families, communities and education in high need areas?\" I ask this question because someone who does not live in Conway has determined to secure a portion of your funds to improve a community that you may never see or have heard about.\r\n\r\nIt is usually said of conservatives that they do not care about kids, the elderly, or community. It\'s about God, guns, military, lower taxes, smaller government and pro-life. Now I am not disputing the veracity of those comments concerning \"God, guns, military, etc.,\" but I will dispute that conservatives do not care about kids, the elderly and community.\r\n\r\n<strong>What we must do is bring solutions to the table.</strong>\r\n\r\nI would argue that the federal government is ill-equipped to disburse funds and improve local communities. I saw with my own eyes last month as the government came into a community and gave away two free cell phones to include a year plan. These phones were then taken and sold as a profit. Who was helped in that situation? This $150 million returned to the hands of Americas citizens would be better stewarded to care for the communities in which they reside and surround.\r\n\r\nNow by reducing or eliminating a program that has been federally funded with tax payer dollars it implies that organizations that have depended on these funds will have a financial and operational vacuum which will impact a Jordan, Talia, Emmit or Nichelle or Caleb. Organizations will have to either reduce their services or find alternative means of funding.\r\n\r\n<strong>This is where you come in.</strong>\r\n\r\nIf we can encourage one another to think locally and creatively engage our city, there is no need for the federal government to create programs that take money from us and then turn around and redistribute as they deem necessary. It means private citizens, churches, local businesses, non profits and city government coming together to discuss and act for the good of the city.\r\n\r\nAmong us are men and women who have been trained to counsel, overcome addictions, former military and police officers. It is through this collective wisdom we can harness our resources and display to our kids, grandkids and to legislators, we will keep our resources local and we will create neighborhoods of promise.\r\n\r\nConservatives, as a non-profit founder, I support you in the reduction of federal programs. I would caution you though that there are some programs that can be eliminated immediately such as, Promise Neighborhoods and there are others like Welfare that must be accomplished gradually. Like I said, as we fight to reduce or eliminate federally funded programs, a vacuum is created that must be filled and we must be prepared to do so.\r\n\r\nSo as you are in discussions with your friends, neighbors and family about reducing programs put forward tangible solutions. Put forward solutions that will say to our city and nation, \"We will not have government care for us. We are image bearers of God who have been given a creative mind to imagine the possible and a soul that knows \"I must care for the one next to me.\"\r\n\r\n</div>','Reconsidering Federal Programs','','publish','open','open','','reconsidering-federal-programs','','','2011-10-20 08:38:24','2011-10-20 15:38:24','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=822',0,'post','',1),(813,12,'2011-10-25 12:00:34','2011-10-25 19:00:34','I remember when I was 8, there was an uproar about why our new youth leader was allowing boys and girls to swim together in the same swimming pool in the overnight lock-in. Shocking!\r\n\r\nBelieve it or not, it’s still a huge issue today for some people. That’s fine. I say let everyone be with their small arguments about the Bible as long as it doesn’t keep me from using the public pool.\r\n\r\nScoot the calendar forward to modern day and there has been a debate for the past several years over viewing movies in church such as “Avatar” (which has profanity!) or “Transformers” (violence AND profanity!) and discussing the movies with teenagers. During the discussions, redeeming topics from Scripture are brought out.\r\n\r\nOne side of the topic says, “You should never allow this type of thing in the church.” The other says, “Let’s watch it together, find the good topics in it and watch it with them.”\r\n\r\nI remember listening to Dr. Albert Mohler, president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary one day on his radio show. A caller was a bit offended that his church was doing this. I think he expected some sympathy, but Dr. Mohler’s response was pretty straight forward – it’s a great idea. We need to be watching these movies with our kids and supervising them.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/bm.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/bm-300x165.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"165\" /></a>That leads me to my little world and my sweet daughters. I say “sweet” until you see them play the Xbox 360 while they play the new Batman: Arkham City and beat the ever loving crud out of some bad guys. You should see them. They sneak up stealthily behind a bad guy brandishing a gun, take him down and knock him unconscious.\r\n\r\n“Did you see that?” they’ll say. “That was awesome!”\r\n\r\nIn the Batman series of games which started with Batman: Arkham Asylum, there is violence and profanity and the series is rated for teens. And I let my girls play.\r\n\r\nBatman is a comic book character who is the alter ego of millionaire Bruce Wayne. His parents were killed in front of him by a criminal when he was a little boy and he has spent his life fighting crime as a vigilante. In both games, he uses a variety of weapons and tools to take down bad guys by non-lethal methods. He uses his detective skills to solve puzzles, meets interesting super villains and makes daring rescues. It’s a lot of fun.\r\n\r\nThere was a moment a couple of years ago when I had to make a conscious decision to allow my girls to play. It wasn’t as careless as me saying, “Yeah, I guess you’re tired of playing Barbie Horse Adventures. Go ahead and pop in Arkham Asylum.”\r\n\r\nI had already played the game and the girls knew how much I loved Batman. I told them they could play but only when I was in the room with them. For a while, they watched me play and they begged me to play themselves. They were hooked.\r\n\r\nSomething interesting happened while they were playing. The first was when my wife Allison walked into the room and said, “He sure kills a lot of people.”\r\n\r\nKatie said, “Batman never kills people. That would be murder.”\r\n\r\nOther times, someone in the game will utter a profanity. Both girls will roll their eyes and look at me or each other. They’ll say, “They shouldn’t say that.” It’s like they’re registering disappointment with the game developers for putting profanity in a game rated “T”.\r\n\r\nThen, my greatest theological “dad” moment. One of them asked, “I know his parents were killed, but why does he seek out justice?”\r\n\r\nI said, “There is a lot of injustice in the world. People throughout history have experienced injustice and have fought against it. They didn’t always wear capes, but they did what they thought was right.”\r\n\r\nEyes fixed firmly on Batman as he soared across the sky, one asked, “Like who?”\r\n\r\nI considered it for a moment. “Martin Luther, a long time ago, saw some injustice in the church he was part of.”\r\n\r\n“Did he fight?” one of them asked as Batman took out yet another villan with a haymaker.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/ml.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-817\" style=\"margin-left: 6px; margin-right: 6px;\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/ml-211x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"164\" height=\"234\" /></a>“He did, but not with his fists. He took up the power of the pen and began to write. He shared his thoughts with the people and was able to make great changes,” I said.\r\n\r\n“What happened to him?” they asked as Batman went into detective mode.\r\n\r\n“Well, he made a lot of people angry and his life was in danger for a long time. But over time, he ended up helping make the changes that started a new movement in Christianity. In fact, if it weren’t for Martin Luther, we wouldn’t have the church we go to now.”\r\n\r\nThey paused the game. “So, he really was a hero, just without the cape and utility belt.”\r\n\r\n“Yeah, he was, girls. I don’t think there’s going to be a Martin Luther video game anytime soon.”\r\n\r\nWe don’t have to isolate ourselves from the culture in order to instruct them. In fact, knowing my children have strong consciences bound to Scripture before they engage the culture gives me peace when I know one day they will enter into it without me. Being part of the culture with them brings me not only a chance to instruct, but a chance to enjoy certain aspects of it with them. Not only that, but we can share common interests and hobbies.\r\n\r\nThat, and now my girls know how much Batman and Martin Luther rock.','Video Games, Batman, and Martin Luther','','publish','open','open','','video-games-batman-and-martin-luther','','','2011-10-22 23:50:04','2011-10-23 06:50:04','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=813',0,'post','',8),(814,12,'2011-10-19 18:47:59','2011-10-20 01:47:59','','bm','','inherit','open','open','','bm','','','2011-10-19 18:47:59','2011-10-20 01:47:59','',813,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/bm.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(815,12,'2011-10-19 18:49:22','2011-10-20 01:49:22','<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/bm.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-814\" style=\"margin-left: 6px;margin-right: 6px\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/bm-300x165.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"165\" /></a>I remember when I was 8, there was an uproar about why our new youth leader was allowing boys and girls to swim together in the same swimming pool in the overnight lock-in. Shocking!\n\nBelieve it or not, it’s still a huge issue today for some people. That’s fine. I say let everyone be with their small arguments about the Bible as long as it doesn’t keep me from using the public pool.\n\nScoot the calendar forward to modern day and there has been a debate for the past several years over viewing movies in church such as “Avatar” (which has profanity!) or “Transformers” (violence AND profanity!) and discussing the movies with teenagers. During the discussions, redeeming topics from Scripture are brought out.\n\nOne side of the topic says, “You should never allow this type of thing in the church.” The other says, “Let’s watch it together, find the good topics in it and watch it with them.”\n\nI remember listening to Dr. Albert Mohler, president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary one day on his radio show. A caller was a bit offended that his church was doing this. I think he expected some sympathy, but Dr. Mohler’s response was pretty straight forward – it’s a great idea. We need to be watching these movies with our kids and supervising them.\n\nThat leads me to my little world and my sweet daughters. I say “sweet” until you see them play the Xbox 360 while they play the new Batman: Arkham City and beat the ever loving crud out of some bad guys. You should see them. They sneak up stealthily behind a bad guy brandishing a gun, take him down and knock him unconscious.\n\n“Did you see that?” they’ll say. “That was awesome!”\n\nIn the Batman series of games which started with Batman: Arkham Asylum, there is violence and profanity and the series is rated for teens. And I let my girls play.\n\nBatman is a comic book character who is the alter ego of millionaire Bruce Wayne. His parents were killed in front of him by a criminal when he was a little boy and he has spent his life fighting crime as a vigilante. In both games, he uses a variety of weapons and tools to take down bad guys by non-lethal methods. He uses his detective skills to solve puzzles, meets interesting super villains and makes daring rescues. It’s a lot of fun.\n\nThere was a moment a couple of years ago when I had to make a conscious decision to allow my girls to play. It wasn’t as careless as me saying, “Yeah, I guess you’re tired of playing Barbie Horse Adventures. Go ahead and pop in Arkham Asylum.”\n\nI had already played the game and the girls knew how much I loved Batman. I told them they could play but only when I was in the room with them. For a while, they watched me play and they begged me to play themselves. They were hooked.\n\nSomething interesting happened while they were playing. The first was when my wife Allison walked into the room and said, “He sure kills a lot of people.”\n\nKatie said, “Batman never kills people. That would be murder.”\n\nOther times, someone in the game will utter a profanity. Both girls will roll their eyes and look at me or each other. They’ll say, “They shouldn’t say that.” It’s like they’re registering disappointment with the game developers for putting profanity in a game rated “T”.\n\nThen, my greatest theological “dad” moment. One of them asked, “I know his parents were killed, but why does he seek out justice?”\n\nI said, “There is a lot of injustice in the world. People throughout history have experienced injustice and have fought against it. They didn’t always wear capes, but they did what they thought was right.”\n\nEyes fixed firmly on Batman as he soared across the sky, one asked, “Like who?”\n\nI considered it for a moment. “Martin Luther, a long time ago, saw some injustice in the church he was part of.”\n\n“Did he fight?” one of them asked as Batman took out yet another villan with a haymaker.\n\n“He did, but not with his fists. He took up the power of the pen and began to write. He shared his thoughts with the people and was able to make great changes,” I said.\n\n“What happened to him?” they asked as Batman went into detective mode.\n\n“Well, he made a lot of people angry and his life was in danger for a long time. But over time, he ended up helping make the changes that started a new movement in Christianity. In fact, if it weren’t for Martin Luther, we wouldn’t have the church we go to now.”\n\nThey paused the game. “So, he really was a hero, just without the cape and utility belt.”\n\n“Yeah, he was, girls. I don’t think there’s going to be a Martin Luther video game anytime soon.”\n\nWe don’t have to isolate ourselves from the culture in order to instruct them. In fact, knowing my children have strong consciences bound to Scripture before they engage the culture gives me peace when I know one day they will enter into it without me. Being part of the culture with them brings me not only a chance to instruct, but a chance to enjoy certain aspects of it with them. Not only that, but we can share common interests and hobbies.\n\nThat, and now my girls know how much Batman and Martin Luther rock.','Video Games, Batman, and Martin Luther','','inherit','open','open','','813-revision','','','2011-10-19 18:49:22','2011-10-20 01:49:22','',813,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/813-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(816,1,'2011-10-21 09:22:55','2011-10-21 16:22:55','I remember when I was 8, there was an uproar about why our new youth leader was allowing boys and girls to swim together in the same swimming pool in the overnight lock-in. Shocking!\r\n\r\nBelieve it or not, it’s still a huge issue today for some people. That’s fine. I say let everyone be with their small arguments about the Bible as long as it doesn’t keep me from using the public pool.\r\n\r\nScoot the calendar forward to modern day and there has been a debate for the past several years over viewing movies in church such as “Avatar” (which has profanity!) or “Transformers” (violence AND profanity!) and discussing the movies with teenagers. During the discussions, redeeming topics from Scripture are brought out.\r\n\r\nOne side of the topic says, “You should never allow this type of thing in the church.” The other says, “Let’s watch it together, find the good topics in it and watch it with them.”\r\n\r\nI remember listening to Dr. Albert Mohler, president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary one day on his radio show. A caller was a bit offended that his church was doing this. I think he expected some sympathy, but Dr. Mohler’s response was pretty straight forward – it’s a great idea. We need to be watching these movies with our kids and supervising them.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/bm.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/bm-300x165.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"165\" /></a>That leads me to my little world and my sweet daughters. I say “sweet” until you see them play the Xbox 360 while they play the new Batman: Arkham City and beat the ever loving crud out of some bad guys. You should see them. They sneak up stealthily behind a bad guy brandishing a gun, take him down and knock him unconscious.\r\n\r\n“Did you see that?” they’ll say. “That was awesome!”\r\n\r\nIn the Batman series of games which started with Batman: Arkham Asylum, there is violence and profanity and the series is rated for teens. And I let my girls play.\r\n\r\nBatman is a comic book character who is the alter ego of millionaire Bruce Wayne. His parents were killed in front of him by a criminal when he was a little boy and he has spent his life fighting crime as a vigilante. In both games, he uses a variety of weapons and tools to take down bad guys by non-lethal methods. He uses his detective skills to solve puzzles, meets interesting super villains and makes daring rescues. It’s a lot of fun.\r\n\r\nThere was a moment a couple of years ago when I had to make a conscious decision to allow my girls to play. It wasn’t as careless as me saying, “Yeah, I guess you’re tired of playing Barbie Horse Adventures. Go ahead and pop in Arkham Asylum.”\r\n\r\nI had already played the game and the girls knew how much I loved Batman. I told them they could play but only when I was in the room with them. For a while, they watched me play and they begged me to play themselves. They were hooked.\r\n\r\nSomething interesting happened while they were playing. The first was when my wife Allison walked into the room and said, “He sure kills a lot of people.”\r\n\r\nKatie said, “Batman never kills people. That would be murder.”\r\n\r\nOther times, someone in the game will utter a profanity. Both girls will roll their eyes and look at me or each other. They’ll say, “They shouldn’t say that.” It’s like they’re registering disappointment with the game developers for putting profanity in a game rated “T”.\r\n\r\nThen, my greatest theological “dad” moment. One of them asked, “I know his parents were killed, but why does he seek out justice?”\r\n\r\nI said, “There is a lot of injustice in the world. People throughout history have experienced injustice and have fought against it. They didn’t always wear capes, but they did what they thought was right.”\r\n\r\nEyes fixed firmly on Batman as he soared across the sky, one asked, “Like who?”\r\n\r\nI considered it for a moment. “Martin Luther, a long time ago, saw some injustice in the church he was part of.”\r\n\r\n“Did he fight?” one of them asked as Batman took out yet another villan with a haymaker.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/ml.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-817\" style=\"margin-left: 6px; margin-right: 6px;\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/ml-211x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"164\" height=\"234\" /></a>“He did, but not with his fists. He took up the power of the pen and began to write. He shared his thoughts with the people and was able to make great changes,” I said.\r\n\r\n“What happened to him?” they asked as Batman went into detective mode.\r\n\r\n“Well, he made a lot of people angry and his life was in danger for a long time. But over time, he ended up helping make the changes that started a new movement in Christianity. In fact, if it weren’t for Martin Luther, we wouldn’t have the church we go to now.”\r\n\r\nThey paused the game. “So, he really was a hero, just without the cape and utility belt.”\r\n\r\n“Yeah, he was, girls. I don’t think there’s going to be a Martin Luther video game anytime soon.”\r\n\r\nWe don’t have to isolate ourselves from the culture in order to instruct them. In fact, knowing my children have strong consciences bound to Scripture before they engage the culture gives me peace when I know one day they will enter into it without me. Being part of the culture with them brings me not only a chance to instruct, but a chance to enjoy certain aspects of it with them. Not only that, but we can share common interests and hobbies.\r\n\r\nThat, and now my girls know how much Batman and Martin Luther rock.','Video Games, Batman, and Martin Luther','','inherit','open','open','','813-autosave','','','2011-10-21 09:22:55','2011-10-21 16:22:55','',813,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/813-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(817,12,'2011-10-19 18:53:29','2011-10-20 01:53:29','','ml','','inherit','open','open','','ml','','','2011-10-19 18:53:29','2011-10-20 01:53:29','',813,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/ml.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(818,12,'2011-10-19 18:50:15','2011-10-20 01:50:15','<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/bm.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-814\" style=\"margin-left: 6px;margin-right: 6px\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/bm-300x165.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"165\" /></a>I remember when I was 8, there was an uproar about why our new youth leader was allowing boys and girls to swim together in the same swimming pool in the overnight lock-in. Shocking!\r\n\r\nBelieve it or not, it’s still a huge issue today for some people. That’s fine. I say let everyone be with their small arguments about the Bible as long as it doesn’t keep me from using the public pool.\r\n\r\nScoot the calendar forward to modern day and there has been a debate for the past several years over viewing movies in church such as “Avatar” (which has profanity!) or “Transformers” (violence AND profanity!) and discussing the movies with teenagers. During the discussions, redeeming topics from Scripture are brought out.\r\n\r\nOne side of the topic says, “You should never allow this type of thing in the church.” The other says, “Let’s watch it together, find the good topics in it and watch it with them.”\r\n\r\nI remember listening to Dr. Albert Mohler, president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary one day on his radio show. A caller was a bit offended that his church was doing this. I think he expected some sympathy, but Dr. Mohler’s response was pretty straight forward – it’s a great idea. We need to be watching these movies with our kids and supervising them.\r\n\r\nThat leads me to my little world and my sweet daughters. I say “sweet” until you see them play the Xbox 360 while they play the new Batman: Arkham City and beat the ever loving crud out of some bad guys. You should see them. They sneak up stealthily behind a bad guy brandishing a gun, take him down and knock him unconscious.\r\n\r\n“Did you see that?” they’ll say. “That was awesome!”\r\n\r\nIn the Batman series of games which started with Batman: Arkham Asylum, there is violence and profanity and the series is rated for teens. And I let my girls play.\r\n\r\nBatman is a comic book character who is the alter ego of millionaire Bruce Wayne. His parents were killed in front of him by a criminal when he was a little boy and he has spent his life fighting crime as a vigilante. In both games, he uses a variety of weapons and tools to take down bad guys by non-lethal methods. He uses his detective skills to solve puzzles, meets interesting super villains and makes daring rescues. It’s a lot of fun.\r\n\r\nThere was a moment a couple of years ago when I had to make a conscious decision to allow my girls to play. It wasn’t as careless as me saying, “Yeah, I guess you’re tired of playing Barbie Horse Adventures. Go ahead and pop in Arkham Asylum.”\r\n\r\nI had already played the game and the girls knew how much I loved Batman. I told them they could play but only when I was in the room with them. For a while, they watched me play and they begged me to play themselves. They were hooked.\r\n\r\nSomething interesting happened while they were playing. The first was when my wife Allison walked into the room and said, “He sure kills a lot of people.”\r\n\r\nKatie said, “Batman never kills people. That would be murder.”\r\n\r\nOther times, someone in the game will utter a profanity. Both girls will roll their eyes and look at me or each other. They’ll say, “They shouldn’t say that.” It’s like they’re registering disappointment with the game developers for putting profanity in a game rated “T”.\r\n\r\nThen, my greatest theological “dad” moment. One of them asked, “I know his parents were killed, but why does he seek out justice?”\r\n\r\nI said, “There is a lot of injustice in the world. People throughout history have experienced injustice and have fought against it. They didn’t always wear capes, but they did what they thought was right.”\r\n\r\nEyes fixed firmly on Batman as he soared across the sky, one asked, “Like who?”\r\n\r\nI considered it for a moment. “Martin Luther, a long time ago, saw some injustice in the church he was part of.”\r\n\r\n“Did he fight?” one of them asked as Batman took out yet another villan with a haymaker.\r\n\r\n“He did, but not with his fists. He took up the power of the pen and began to write. He shared his thoughts with the people and was able to make great changes,” I said.\r\n\r\n“What happened to him?” they asked as Batman went into detective mode.\r\n\r\n“Well, he made a lot of people angry and his life was in danger for a long time. But over time, he ended up helping make the changes that started a new movement in Christianity. In fact, if it weren’t for Martin Luther, we wouldn’t have the church we go to now.”\r\n\r\nThey paused the game. “So, he really was a hero, just without the cape and utility belt.”\r\n\r\n“Yeah, he was, girls. I don’t think there’s going to be a Martin Luther video game anytime soon.”\r\n\r\nWe don’t have to isolate ourselves from the culture in order to instruct them. In fact, knowing my children have strong consciences bound to Scripture before they engage the culture gives me peace when I know one day they will enter into it without me. Being part of the culture with them brings me not only a chance to instruct, but a chance to enjoy certain aspects of it with them. Not only that, but we can share common interests and hobbies.\r\n\r\nThat, and now my girls know how much Batman and Martin Luther rock.','Video Games, Batman, and Martin Luther','','inherit','open','open','','813-revision-2','','','2011-10-19 18:50:15','2011-10-20 01:50:15','',813,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/813-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(863,1,'2011-10-21 09:21:45','2011-10-21 16:21:45','','Batman_logo','','inherit','open','open','','batman_logo','','','2011-10-21 09:21:45','2011-10-21 16:21:45','',813,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Batman_logo.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(819,1,'2011-10-19 20:22:37','2011-10-20 03:22:37','<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/wmch1.jpg\"><img class=\"size-medium wp-image-811 alignleft\" style=\"margin-left: 6px; margin-right: 6px;\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/wmch1-300x244.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"251\" height=\"204\" /></a>A friend of mine was trying to tell me the joyful challenges he faces each day as he ministers to the Hispanic community here in rural Kentucky. My friend, Darrick, speaks no Spanish, grew up with no appreciation for Mexican heritage, and yet he feels drawn to the Mexican community to share his faith with them.\r\n\r\nThe topic arose while we were discussing the idea of “faith as community.” It hadn’t been going well for the home Protestant team that had been occupying the area in local Baptist fellowships for over 150 years. Don’t get me wrong. I’m a card carrying Southern Baptist, but through many dangers, toils and snares, I’m beginning to understand the difference between what many churches are doing and true community.\r\n\r\nLet me move back for a moment. I remember the heralded days of my youth in the Southern Baptist Church. Sunday school in the morning, worship after, Mom’s roast for lunch, a nice nap then off for discipleship at 5:00 and Sunday night service. Return on Wednesday for prayer meeting or youth activities and you’ll discover you’re a well rounded Southern Baptist. We called it “good Christian fellowship” and as time moved on and semantics changed, we called it “community.”\r\n\r\nI learned very quickly when I became a pastor that programs, activities, and pew sitting do not transform a congregation into a true Christian community.\r\n\r\nBut please don’t judge. This can happen in any non-denominational or denominational structure. Anytime we place our hopes into a program to develop true spirituality or community, we’ve failed. That is not to say that a program cannot be used to encourage it, but if it used as a substitute for it, it ends up being a bland sacchariny failure.\r\n\r\nThe result is we are left with churches that are a perfect reflection of our culture. We have Wal-Mart for our one stop shopping needs, Old Navy for our discount clothing needs, Blockbuster for our movie rentals – and on Sunday we can stop in and consume God. When we’re done, we can leave him there until we need him again the following week.\r\n\r\nWe have become a society that consumes God. If we like a church that meets our needs, we stick around. If it fails us, we shop around. When we leave church and didn’t like it, we hear ourselves say, “I didn’t really get anything out of that today.”\r\n\r\nWe are slowly abandoning the community element and the lifeblood of the church – the body of Christ.\r\n\r\nIt’s easy to be an internet tough guy and point out a problem. What can be done about this program oriented culture where millions are entering church to be one-stop shoppers to take their required piece of God to survive?\r\n\r\nSadly, there are probably many who view church as just as important each week as their trip to Wal-Mart. Christ demands that we lay everything down in pursuit of Him. He calls for serious disciples with sold out hearts. In return, He gives us His life, His love, His heart.\r\n\r\nMy friend Darrick spoke of the way the Hispanic community is a true community. When they go to church on Sunday, it is simply an extension of the way they have been meeting with one another all week. Each family is concerned with each other all week, knows of personal needs, and always has time for one another. Going to church is not a day where everyone catches up with the events of the week. It is a day of worship and spiritual renewal for the community.\r\n\r\nHopefully we can change the view we have of our church attendance. Too often, we see ourselves going into the church on Sunday for a service. What if we were to view ourselves as a spiritual community leaving the church, being the church and remaining the church all week?','Consuming God','','inherit','open','open','','808-autosave','','','2011-10-19 20:22:37','2011-10-20 03:22:37','',808,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/808-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(820,1,'2011-10-19 18:46:01','2011-10-20 01:46:01','<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/wmch1.jpg\"><img class=\"size-medium wp-image-811 alignleft\" style=\"margin-left: 6px;margin-right: 6px\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/wmch1-300x244.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"251\" height=\"204\" /></a>A friend of mine was trying to tell me the joyful challenges he faces each day as he ministers to the Hispanic community here in rural Kentucky. My friend, Darrick, speaks no Spanish, grew up with no appreciation for Mexican heritage, and yet he feels drawn to the Mexican community to share his faith with them.\r\n\r\nThe topic arose while we were discussing the idea of “faith as community.” It hadn’t been going well for the home Protestant team that had been occupying the area in local Baptist fellowships for over 150 years. Don’t get me wrong. I’m a card carrying Southern Baptist, but through many dangers, toils and snares, I’m beginning to understand the difference between what many churches are doing and true community.\r\n\r\nLet me move back for a moment. I remember the heralded days of my youth in the Southern Baptist Church. Sunday school in the morning, worship after, Mom’s roast for lunch, a nice nap then off for discipleship at 5:00 and Sunday night service. Return on Wednesday for prayer meeting or youth activities and you’ll discover you’re a well rounded Southern Baptist. We called it “good Christian fellowship” and as time moved on and semantics changed, we called it “community.”\r\n\r\nI learned very quickly when I became a pastor that programs, activities, and pew sitting do not transform a congregation into a true Christian community.\r\n\r\nBut please don’t judge. This can happen in any non-denominational or denominational structure. Anytime we place our hopes into a program to develop true spirituality or community, we’ve failed. That is not to say that a program cannot be used to encourage it, but if it used as a substitute for it, it ends up being a bland sacchariny failure.\r\n\r\nThe result is we are left with churches that are a perfect reflection of our culture. We have Wal-Mart for our one stop shopping needs, Old Navy for our discount clothing needs, Blockbuster for our movie rentals – and on Sunday we can stop in and consume God. When we’re done, we can leave him there until we need him again the following week.\r\n\r\nWe have become a society that consumes God. If we like a church that meets our needs, we stick around. If it fails us, we shop around. When we leave church and didn’t like it, we hear ourselves say, “I didn’t really get anything out of that today.”\r\n\r\nWe are slowly abandoning the community element and the lifeblood of the church – the body of Christ.\r\n\r\nIt’s easy to be an internet tough guy and point out a problem. What can be done about this program oriented culture where millions are entering church to be one-stop shoppers to take their required piece of God to survive?\r\n\r\nSadly, there are probably many who view church as just as important each week as their trip to Wal-Mart. Christ demands that we lay everything down in pursuit of Him. He calls for serious disciples with sold out hearts. In return, He gives us His life, His love, His heart.\r\n\r\nMy friend Darrick spoke of the way the Hispanic community is a true community. When they go to church on Sunday, it is simply an extension of the way they have been meeting with one another all week. Each family is concerned with each other all week, knows of personal needs, and always has time for one another. Going to church is not a day where everyone catches up with the events of the week. It is a day of worship and spiritual renewal for the community.\r\n\r\nHopefully we can change the view we have of our church attendance. Too often, we see ourselves going into the church on Sunday for a service. What if we were to view ourselves as a spiritual community leaving the church, being the church and remaining the church all week?','Consuming God','','inherit','open','open','','808-revision-3','','','2011-10-19 18:46:01','2011-10-20 01:46:01','',808,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/808-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(823,65,'2011-10-19 23:04:53','2011-10-20 06:04:53','<div>\n\nThere are human consequences when we reduce government funding, therefore it is incumbent for us to inspire and encourage private citizens and communities to create ways to bear one another\'s burdens.\n\nIn our country, there are many programs that exist to provide for the health, welfare and education of citizens that could be done by its citizens on a local level and create a far-reaching effect for generations to come. Federal programs exist for education, employment, medicine, housing development and transportation. While well-meaning, these programs create two negative consequences: 1) The drive to be creative is diminished and 2) Persons become dependent on an institution; namely government which was never intended to provide for the 100% needs of an individual or family.\n\nPrograms, whether on a local, state or national level, impact people on a daily basis. These are flesh and blood men and women who are either fighting for the \"American Dream,\" or who are taking advantage of these said programs. Therefore in our urging for the reduction of programs that are funded with our tax dollars we must remember that as those dollars are removed, men, women and children are impacted.\n\nThe Department of Education\'s mission is to \"promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access.\"\n\nAccording to Whitehouse.gov and the FY2012 Budget, the Department of Education requested $77.4 Billion dollars. This makes up 2.77% of the total budget for the United States. In this budget 150 million dollars would be invested into what is called Promise Neighborhoods which is designed \"to support effective community services, strong family supports, and rigorous comprehensive education reforms to improve the educational and life outcomes for children and youth in high-need communities.\"\n\nCan we consider for a moment this program of improving neighborhoods through community services, strong families, and educational improvement and life outcomes? Ask yourself, \"Who is better equipped to address the needs in your community? What resources are currently available in my community to support and improve families, communities and education in high need areas?\" I ask this question because someone who does not live in Conway has determined to secure a portion of your funds to improve a community that you may never see or have heard about.\n\nIt is usually said of conservatives that they do not care about kids, the elderly, or community. It\'s about God, guns, military, lower taxes, smaller government and pro-life. Now I am not disputing the veracity of those comments concerning \"God, guns, military, etc.,\" but I will dispute that conservatives do not care about kids, the elderly and community.\n\n<strong>What we must do is bring solutions to the table.</strong>\n\nI would argue that the federal government is ill-equipped to disburse funds and improve local communities. I saw with my own eyes last month as the government came into a community and gave away two free cell phones to include a year plan. These phones were then taken and sold as a profit. Who was helped in that situation? This $150 million returned to the hands of Americas citizens would be better stewarded to care for the communities in which they reside and surround.\n\nNow by reducing or eliminating a program that has been federally funded with tax payer dollars it implies that organizations that have depended on these funds will have a financial and operational vacuum which will impact a Jordan, Talia, Emmit or Nichelle or Caleb. Organizations will have to either reduce their services or find alternative means of funding.\n\n<strong>This is where you come in.</strong>\n\nIf we can encourage one another to think locally and creatively engage our city, there is no need for the federal government to create programs that take money from us and then turn around and redistribute as they deem necessary. It means private citizens, churches, local businesses, non profits and city government coming together to discuss and act for the good of the city.\n\nAmong us are men and women who have been trained to counsel, overcome addictions, former military and police officers. It is through this collective wisdom we can harness our resources and display to our kids, grandkids and to legislators, we will keep our resources local and we will create neighborhoods of promise.\n\nConservatives, as a non-profit founder, I support you in the reduction of federal programs. I would caution you though that there are some programs that can be eliminated immediately such as, Promise Neighborhoods and there are others like Welfare that must be accomplished gradually. Like I said, as we fight to reduce or eliminate federally funded programs, a vacuum is created that must be filled and we must be prepared to do so.\n\nSo as you are in discussions with your friends, neighbors and family about reducing programs put forward tangible solutions. Put forward solutions that will say to our city and nation, \"We will not have government care for us. We are image bearers of God who have been given a creative mind to imagine the possible and a soul that knows \"I must care for the one next to me.\"\n\n</div>\n<div></div>','A  Word to Conservatives Concerning Federal Programs','','inherit','open','open','','822-revision','','','2011-10-19 23:04:53','2011-10-20 06:04:53','',822,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/822-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(824,65,'2011-10-19 23:05:07','2011-10-20 06:05:07','<div>\r\n\r\nThere are human consequences when we reduce government funding, therefore it is incumbent for us to inspire and encourage private citizens and communities to create ways to bear one another\'s burdens.\r\n\r\nIn our country, there are many programs that exist to provide for the health, welfare and education of citizens that could be done by its citizens on a local level and create a far-reaching effect for generations to come. Federal programs exist for education, employment, medicine, housing development and transportation. While well-meaning, these programs create two negative consequences: 1) The drive to be creative is diminished and 2) Persons become dependent on an institution; namely government which was never intended to provide for the 100% needs of an individual or family.\r\n\r\nPrograms, whether on a local, state or national level, impact people on a daily basis. These are flesh and blood men and women who are either fighting for the \"American Dream,\" or who are taking advantage of these said programs. Therefore in our urging for the reduction of programs that are funded with our tax dollars we must remember that as those dollars are removed, men, women and children are impacted.\r\n\r\nThe Department of Education\'s mission is to \"promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access.\"\r\n\r\nAccording to Whitehouse.gov and the FY2012 Budget, the Department of Education requested $77.4 Billion dollars. This makes up 2.77% of the total budget for the United States. In this budget 150 million dollars would be invested into what is called Promise Neighborhoods which is designed \"to support effective community services, strong family supports, and rigorous comprehensive education reforms to improve the educational and life outcomes for children and youth in high-need communities.\"\r\n\r\nCan we consider for a moment this program of improving neighborhoods through community services, strong families, and educational improvement and life outcomes? Ask yourself, \"Who is better equipped to address the needs in your community? What resources are currently available in my community to support and improve families, communities and education in high need areas?\" I ask this question because someone who does not live in Conway has determined to secure a portion of your funds to improve a community that you may never see or have heard about.\r\n\r\nIt is usually said of conservatives that they do not care about kids, the elderly, or community. It\'s about God, guns, military, lower taxes, smaller government and pro-life. Now I am not disputing the veracity of those comments concerning \"God, guns, military, etc.,\" but I will dispute that conservatives do not care about kids, the elderly and community.\r\n\r\n<strong>What we must do is bring solutions to the table.</strong>\r\n\r\nI would argue that the federal government is ill-equipped to disburse funds and improve local communities. I saw with my own eyes last month as the government came into a community and gave away two free cell phones to include a year plan. These phones were then taken and sold as a profit. Who was helped in that situation? This $150 million returned to the hands of Americas citizens would be better stewarded to care for the communities in which they reside and surround.\r\n\r\nNow by reducing or eliminating a program that has been federally funded with tax payer dollars it implies that organizations that have depended on these funds will have a financial and operational vacuum which will impact a Jordan, Talia, Emmit or Nichelle or Caleb. Organizations will have to either reduce their services or find alternative means of funding.\r\n\r\n<strong>This is where you come in.</strong>\r\n\r\nIf we can encourage one another to think locally and creatively engage our city, there is no need for the federal government to create programs that take money from us and then turn around and redistribute as they deem necessary. It means private citizens, churches, local businesses, non profits and city government coming together to discuss and act for the good of the city.\r\n\r\nAmong us are men and women who have been trained to counsel, overcome addictions, former military and police officers. It is through this collective wisdom we can harness our resources and display to our kids, grandkids and to legislators, we will keep our resources local and we will create neighborhoods of promise.\r\n\r\nConservatives, as a non-profit founder, I support you in the reduction of federal programs. I would caution you though that there are some programs that can be eliminated immediately such as, Promise Neighborhoods and there are others like Welfare that must be accomplished gradually. Like I said, as we fight to reduce or eliminate federally funded programs, a vacuum is created that must be filled and we must be prepared to do so.\r\n\r\nSo as you are in discussions with your friends, neighbors and family about reducing programs put forward tangible solutions. Put forward solutions that will say to our city and nation, \"We will not have government care for us. We are image bearers of God who have been given a creative mind to imagine the possible and a soul that knows \"I must care for the one next to me.\"\r\n\r\n</div>\r\n<div></div>','A  Word to Conservatives Concerning Federal Programs','','inherit','open','open','','822-revision-2','','','2011-10-19 23:05:07','2011-10-20 06:05:07','',822,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/822-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(825,65,'2011-10-19 23:15:31','2011-10-20 06:15:31','','OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA','','inherit','open','open','','olympus-digital-camera','','','2011-10-19 23:15:31','2011-10-20 06:15:31','',822,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/sunset-1-3.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(826,65,'2011-10-19 23:13:46','2011-10-20 06:13:46','<div>\r\n\r\nThere are human consequences when we reduce government funding, therefore it is incumbent for us to inspire and encourage private citizens and communities to create ways to bear one another\'s burdens.\r\n\r\nIn our country, there are many programs that exist to provide for the health, welfare and education of citizens that could be done by its citizens on a local level and create a far-reaching effect for generations to come. Federal programs exist for education, employment, medicine, housing development and transportation. While well-meaning, these programs create two negative consequences: 1) The drive to be creative is diminished and 2) Persons become dependent on an institution; namely government which was never intended to provide for the 100% needs of an individual or family.\r\n\r\nPrograms, whether on a local, state or national level, impact people on a daily basis. These are flesh and blood men and women who are either fighting for the \"American Dream,\" or who are taking advantage of these said programs. Therefore in our urging for the reduction of programs that are funded with our tax dollars we must remember that as those dollars are removed, men, women and children are impacted.\r\n\r\nThe Department of Education\'s mission is to \"promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access.\"\r\n\r\nAccording to Whitehouse.gov and the FY2012 Budget, the Department of Education requested $77.4 Billion dollars. This makes up 2.77% of the total budget for the United States. In this budget 150 million dollars would be invested into what is called Promise Neighborhoods which is designed \"to support effective community services, strong family supports, and rigorous comprehensive education reforms to improve the educational and life outcomes for children and youth in high-need communities.\"\r\n\r\nCan we consider for a moment this program of improving neighborhoods through community services, strong families, and educational improvement and life outcomes? Ask yourself, \"Who is better equipped to address the needs in your community? What resources are currently available in my community to support and improve families, communities and education in high need areas?\" I ask this question because someone who does not live in Conway has determined to secure a portion of your funds to improve a community that you may never see or have heard about.\r\n\r\nIt is usually said of conservatives that they do not care about kids, the elderly, or community. It\'s about God, guns, military, lower taxes, smaller government and pro-life. Now I am not disputing the veracity of those comments concerning \"God, guns, military, etc.,\" but I will dispute that conservatives do not care about kids, the elderly and community.\r\n\r\n<strong>What we must do is bring solutions to the table.</strong>\r\n\r\nI would argue that the federal government is ill-equipped to disburse funds and improve local communities. I saw with my own eyes last month as the government came into a community and gave away two free cell phones to include a year plan. These phones were then taken and sold as a profit. Who was helped in that situation? This $150 million returned to the hands of Americas citizens would be better stewarded to care for the communities in which they reside and surround.\r\n\r\nNow by reducing or eliminating a program that has been federally funded with tax payer dollars it implies that organizations that have depended on these funds will have a financial and operational vacuum which will impact a Jordan, Talia, Emmit or Nichelle or Caleb. Organizations will have to either reduce their services or find alternative means of funding.\r\n\r\n<strong>This is where you come in.</strong>\r\n\r\nIf we can encourage one another to think locally and creatively engage our city, there is no need for the federal government to create programs that take money from us and then turn around and redistribute as they deem necessary. It means private citizens, churches, local businesses, non profits and city government coming together to discuss and act for the good of the city.\r\n\r\nAmong us are men and women who have been trained to counsel, overcome addictions, former military and police officers. It is through this collective wisdom we can harness our resources and display to our kids, grandkids and to legislators, we will keep our resources local and we will create neighborhoods of promise.\r\n\r\nConservatives, as a non-profit founder, I support you in the reduction of federal programs. I would caution you though that there are some programs that can be eliminated immediately such as, Promise Neighborhoods and there are others like Welfare that must be accomplished gradually. Like I said, as we fight to reduce or eliminate federally funded programs, a vacuum is created that must be filled and we must be prepared to do so.\r\n\r\nSo as you are in discussions with your friends, neighbors and family about reducing programs put forward tangible solutions. Put forward solutions that will say to our city and nation, \"We will not have government care for us. We are image bearers of God who have been given a creative mind to imagine the possible and a soul that knows \"I must care for the one next to me.\"\r\n\r\n</div>\r\n<div></div>','A  Word to Conservatives Concerning Federal Programs','','inherit','open','open','','822-revision-3','','','2011-10-19 23:13:46','2011-10-20 06:13:46','',822,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/822-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(827,65,'2011-10-19 23:17:47','2011-10-20 06:17:47','<div>\r\n\r\nThere are human consequences when we reduce government funding, therefore it is incumbent for us to inspire and encourage private citizens and communities to create ways to bear one another\'s burdens.\r\n\r\nIn our country, there are many programs that exist to provide for the health, welfare and education of citizens that could be done by its citizens on a local level and create a far-reaching effect for generations to come. Federal programs exist for education, employment, medicine, housing development and transportation. While well-meaning, these programs create two negative consequences: 1) The drive to be creative is diminished and 2) Persons become dependent on an institution; namely government which was never intended to provide for the 100% needs of an individual or family.\r\n\r\nPrograms, whether on a local, state or national level, impact people on a daily basis. These are flesh and blood men and women who are either fighting for the \"American Dream,\" or who are taking advantage of these said programs. Therefore in our urging for the reduction of programs that are funded with our tax dollars we must remember that as those dollars are removed, men, women and children are impacted.\r\n\r\nThe Department of Education\'s mission is to \"promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access.\"\r\n\r\nAccording to Whitehouse.gov and the FY2012 Budget, the Department of Education requested $77.4 Billion dollars. This makes up 2.77% of the total budget for the United States. In this budget 150 million dollars would be invested into what is called Promise Neighborhoods which is designed \"to support effective community services, strong family supports, and rigorous comprehensive education reforms to improve the educational and life outcomes for children and youth in high-need communities.\"\r\n\r\nCan we consider for a moment this program of improving neighborhoods through community services, strong families, and educational improvement and life outcomes? Ask yourself, \"Who is better equipped to address the needs in your community? What resources are currently available in my community to support and improve families, communities and education in high need areas?\" I ask this question because someone who does not live in Conway has determined to secure a portion of your funds to improve a community that you may never see or have heard about.\r\n\r\nIt is usually said of conservatives that they do not care about kids, the elderly, or community. It\'s about God, guns, military, lower taxes, smaller government and pro-life. Now I am not disputing the veracity of those comments concerning \"God, guns, military, etc.,\" but I will dispute that conservatives do not care about kids, the elderly and community.\r\n\r\n<strong>What we must do is bring solutions to the table.</strong>\r\n\r\nI would argue that the federal government is ill-equipped to disburse funds and improve local communities. I saw with my own eyes last month as the government came into a community and gave away two free cell phones to include a year plan. These phones were then taken and sold as a profit. Who was helped in that situation? This $150 million returned to the hands of Americas citizens would be better stewarded to care for the communities in which they reside and surround.\r\n\r\nNow by reducing or eliminating a program that has been federally funded with tax payer dollars it implies that organizations that have depended on these funds will have a financial and operational vacuum which will impact a Jordan, Talia, Emmit or Nichelle or Caleb. Organizations will have to either reduce their services or find alternative means of funding.\r\n\r\n<strong>This is where you come in.</strong>\r\n\r\nIf we can encourage one another to think locally and creatively engage our city, there is no need for the federal government to create programs that take money from us and then turn around and redistribute as they deem necessary. It means private citizens, churches, local businesses, non profits and city government coming together to discuss and act for the good of the city.\r\n\r\nAmong us are men and women who have been trained to counsel, overcome addictions, former military and police officers. It is through this collective wisdom we can harness our resources and display to our kids, grandkids and to legislators, we will keep our resources local and we will create neighborhoods of promise.\r\n\r\nConservatives, as a non-profit founder, I support you in the reduction of federal programs. I would caution you though that there are some programs that can be eliminated immediately such as, Promise Neighborhoods and there are others like Welfare that must be accomplished gradually. Like I said, as we fight to reduce or eliminate federally funded programs, a vacuum is created that must be filled and we must be prepared to do so.\r\n\r\nSo as you are in discussions with your friends, neighbors and family about reducing programs put forward tangible solutions. Put forward solutions that will say to our city and nation, \"We will not have government care for us. We are image bearers of God who have been given a creative mind to imagine the possible and a soul that knows \"I must care for the one next to me.\"\r\n\r\n</div>','A  Word to Conservatives Concerning Federal Programs','','inherit','open','open','','822-revision-4','','','2011-10-19 23:17:47','2011-10-20 06:17:47','',822,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/822-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(828,0,'2011-10-20 08:02:54','2011-10-20 15:02:54','Death of Gadhafi.  Is America A Christian Nation?  Should it be?  Loving your enemy\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Jake Kampe\nAUTHOR EMAIL: wjkampe@comcast.net\nAUTHOR URL: http://www.nakedtheologytalk.blogspot.com\nSUBJECT: Provoketive Magazine Writing For Proketive\nIP: 98.98.8.102\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Jake Kampe\n    [Email] =&gt; wjkampe@comcast.net\n    [Existing Blog or Website] =&gt; www.nakedtheologytalk.blogspot.com\n    [List the topic you are interested writing about] =&gt; Death of Gadhafi.  Is America A Christian Nation?  Should it be?  Loving your enemy\n    [Current or New WordPress Login Name (We\'ll send you a password.)] =&gt; wjkampe\n)\n','Jake Kampe - 2011-10-20 08:02:54','','publish','open','open','','1b044cc8809cfffb05ecc52bd2b28bba','','','2011-10-20 08:02:54','2011-10-20 15:02:54','',358,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=828',0,'feedback','',0),(829,1,'2011-10-20 08:26:26','2011-10-20 15:26:26','<div>\r\n\r\nThere are human consequences when we reduce government funding, therefore it is incumbent for us to inspire and encourage private citizens and communities to create ways to bear one another\'s burdens.\r\n\r\nIn our country, there are many programs that exist to provide for the health, welfare and education of citizens that could be done by its citizens on a local level and create a far-reaching effect for generations to come. Federal programs exist for education, employment, medicine, housing development and transportation. While well-meaning, these programs create two negative consequences: 1) The drive to be creative is diminished and 2) Persons become dependent on an institution; namely government which was never intended to provide for the 100% needs of an individual or family.\r\n\r\nPrograms, whether on a local, state or national level, impact people on a daily basis. These are flesh and blood men and women who are either fighting for the \"American Dream,\" or who are taking advantage of these said programs. Therefore in our urging for the reduction of programs that are funded with our tax dollars we must remember that as those dollars are removed, men, women and children are impacted.\r\n\r\nThe Department of Education\'s mission is to \"promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access.\"\r\n\r\nAccording to Whitehouse.gov and the FY2012 Budget, the Department of Education requested $77.4 Billion dollars. This makes up 2.77% of the total budget for the United States. In this budget 150 million dollars would be invested into what is called Promise Neighborhoods which is designed \"to support effective community services, strong family supports, and rigorous comprehensive education reforms to improve the educational and life outcomes for children and youth in high-need communities.\"\r\n\r\nCan we consider for a moment this program of improving neighborhoods through community services, strong families, and educational improvement and life outcomes? Ask yourself, \"Who is better equipped to address the needs in your community? What resources are currently available in my community to support and improve families, communities and education in high need areas?\" I ask this question because someone who does not live in Conway has determined to secure a portion of your funds to improve a community that you may never see or have heard about.\r\n\r\nIt is usually said of conservatives that they do not care about kids, the elderly, or community. It\'s about God, guns, military, lower taxes, smaller government and pro-life. Now I am not disputing the veracity of those comments concerning \"God, guns, military, etc.,\" but I will dispute that conservatives do not care about kids, the elderly and community.\r\n\r\n<strong>What we must do is bring solutions to the table.</strong>\r\n\r\nI would argue that the federal government is ill-equipped to disburse funds and improve local communities. I saw with my own eyes last month as the government came into a community and gave away two free cell phones to include a year plan. These phones were then taken and sold as a profit. Who was helped in that situation? This $150 million returned to the hands of Americas citizens would be better stewarded to care for the communities in which they reside and surround.\r\n\r\nNow by reducing or eliminating a program that has been federally funded with tax payer dollars it implies that organizations that have depended on these funds will have a financial and operational vacuum which will impact a Jordan, Talia, Emmit or Nichelle or Caleb. Organizations will have to either reduce their services or find alternative means of funding.\r\n\r\n<strong>This is where you come in.</strong>\r\n\r\nIf we can encourage one another to think locally and creatively engage our city, there is no need for the federal government to create programs that take money from us and then turn around and redistribute as they deem necessary. It means private citizens, churches, local businesses, non profits and city government coming together to discuss and act for the good of the city.\r\n\r\nAmong us are men and women who have been trained to counsel, overcome addictions, former military and police officers. It is through this collective wisdom we can harness our resources and display to our kids, grandkids and to legislators, we will keep our resources local and we will create neighborhoods of promise.\r\n\r\nConservatives, as a non-profit founder, I support you in the reduction of federal programs. I would caution you though that there are some programs that can be eliminated immediately such as, Promise Neighborhoods and there are others like Welfare that must be accomplished gradually. Like I said, as we fight to reduce or eliminate federally funded programs, a vacuum is created that must be filled and we must be prepared to do so.\r\n\r\nSo as you are in discussions with your friends, neighbors and family about reducing programs put forward tangible solutions. Put forward solutions that will say to our city and nation, \"We will not have government care for us. We are image bearers of God who have been given a creative mind to imagine the possible and a soul that knows \"I must care for the one next to me.\"\r\n\r\n</div>','A  Word to Conservatives Concerning Federal Programs','','inherit','open','open','','822-autosave','','','2011-10-20 08:26:26','2011-10-20 15:26:26','',822,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/20/822-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(830,1,'2011-10-20 08:36:54','2011-10-20 15:36:54','','Handout','','inherit','open','open','','handout','','','2011-10-20 08:36:54','2011-10-20 15:36:54','',822,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Handout.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(831,1,'2011-10-19 23:17:55','2011-10-20 06:17:55','<div>\r\n\r\nThere are human consequences when we reduce government funding, therefore it is incumbent for us to inspire and encourage private citizens and communities to create ways to bear one another\'s burdens.\r\n\r\nIn our country, there are many programs that exist to provide for the health, welfare and education of citizens that could be done by its citizens on a local level and create a far-reaching effect for generations to come. Federal programs exist for education, employment, medicine, housing development and transportation. While well-meaning, these programs create two negative consequences: 1) The drive to be creative is diminished and 2) Persons become dependent on an institution; namely government which was never intended to provide for the 100% needs of an individual or family.\r\n\r\nPrograms, whether on a local, state or national level, impact people on a daily basis. These are flesh and blood men and women who are either fighting for the \"American Dream,\" or who are taking advantage of these said programs. Therefore in our urging for the reduction of programs that are funded with our tax dollars we must remember that as those dollars are removed, men, women and children are impacted.\r\n\r\nThe Department of Education\'s mission is to \"promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access.\"\r\n\r\nAccording to Whitehouse.gov and the FY2012 Budget, the Department of Education requested $77.4 Billion dollars. This makes up 2.77% of the total budget for the United States. In this budget 150 million dollars would be invested into what is called Promise Neighborhoods which is designed \"to support effective community services, strong family supports, and rigorous comprehensive education reforms to improve the educational and life outcomes for children and youth in high-need communities.\"\r\n\r\nCan we consider for a moment this program of improving neighborhoods through community services, strong families, and educational improvement and life outcomes? Ask yourself, \"Who is better equipped to address the needs in your community? What resources are currently available in my community to support and improve families, communities and education in high need areas?\" I ask this question because someone who does not live in Conway has determined to secure a portion of your funds to improve a community that you may never see or have heard about.\r\n\r\nIt is usually said of conservatives that they do not care about kids, the elderly, or community. It\'s about God, guns, military, lower taxes, smaller government and pro-life. Now I am not disputing the veracity of those comments concerning \"God, guns, military, etc.,\" but I will dispute that conservatives do not care about kids, the elderly and community.\r\n\r\n<strong>What we must do is bring solutions to the table.</strong>\r\n\r\nI would argue that the federal government is ill-equipped to disburse funds and improve local communities. I saw with my own eyes last month as the government came into a community and gave away two free cell phones to include a year plan. These phones were then taken and sold as a profit. Who was helped in that situation? This $150 million returned to the hands of Americas citizens would be better stewarded to care for the communities in which they reside and surround.\r\n\r\nNow by reducing or eliminating a program that has been federally funded with tax payer dollars it implies that organizations that have depended on these funds will have a financial and operational vacuum which will impact a Jordan, Talia, Emmit or Nichelle or Caleb. Organizations will have to either reduce their services or find alternative means of funding.\r\n\r\n<strong>This is where you come in.</strong>\r\n\r\nIf we can encourage one another to think locally and creatively engage our city, there is no need for the federal government to create programs that take money from us and then turn around and redistribute as they deem necessary. It means private citizens, churches, local businesses, non profits and city government coming together to discuss and act for the good of the city.\r\n\r\nAmong us are men and women who have been trained to counsel, overcome addictions, former military and police officers. It is through this collective wisdom we can harness our resources and display to our kids, grandkids and to legislators, we will keep our resources local and we will create neighborhoods of promise.\r\n\r\nConservatives, as a non-profit founder, I support you in the reduction of federal programs. I would caution you though that there are some programs that can be eliminated immediately such as, Promise Neighborhoods and there are others like Welfare that must be accomplished gradually. Like I said, as we fight to reduce or eliminate federally funded programs, a vacuum is created that must be filled and we must be prepared to do so.\r\n\r\nSo as you are in discussions with your friends, neighbors and family about reducing programs put forward tangible solutions. Put forward solutions that will say to our city and nation, \"We will not have government care for us. We are image bearers of God who have been given a creative mind to imagine the possible and a soul that knows \"I must care for the one next to me.\"\r\n\r\n</div>','A  Word to Conservatives Concerning Federal Programs','','inherit','open','open','','822-revision-5','','','2011-10-19 23:17:55','2011-10-20 06:17:55','',822,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/822-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(1298,64,'2011-10-29 09:52:23','2011-10-29 16:52:23','<strong>I Never Thought</strong>\r\n\r\nMy trick-or-treating years were in the 70\'s.  Back then, I honestly never thought about whether it was okay to dress up as a Hobo which was my costume of choice.  Thinking back, though essentially it is a homeless person, I did not consider my costume in any terms other than it was <em>cheap and convenient</em>.  You see my parents didn\'t have the money to buy costumes nor were they so rampantly available as they are today.  Is it just me or have costume stores been increasing?  It has made Halloween less creative and more expensive, though admittedly more convenient.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>But that does not mean </em><em>that we can turn of our brains and close our hearts when we walk into Halloween Superstores</em>.</strong>\r\n\r\nI realize now that a Hobo was a horrible thing to be for Halloween.  Those that find themselves homeless are real people, many of whom are certainly down on their luck and are oppressed by a society that makes assumptions about their worth.  Our stereotypes about the homeless are in many cases downright wrong. No-one would choose to be unshaven, dirty or poorly dressed and they are not all alcoholics.  But I digress.\r\n\r\n<strong>“We are a culture not a costume.”</strong>\r\n\r\nI read those words recently and it broke my heart that college kids have to actually utter them.  They were students at Ohio University who went so far as to develop an awareness campaign “We are culture not a costume” to educate other students and to fight the use of hurtful Halloween costumes that stereotype ethnic groups and cultures.   For their brave effort they have been mocked and criticized, but the haters are so wrong.\r\n\r\nThe problem is that there are many beautiful cultures and people groups that are parodied, mocked and imitated today by unthinking or ignorant people.  (Not to mention how women are sexualized in every single profession and identity imaginable but that is not what this is about.)  Some of these are: <a href=\"http://education.byu.edu/diversity/culture.html#african\">African American &amp; African</a>, <a href=\"http://education.byu.edu/diversity/culture.html#asian\">Asian American, Asian, &amp; Pacific Islander</a>, <a href=\"http://education.byu.edu/diversity/culture.html#nativeamerican\">Native American</a>, <a href=\"http://education.byu.edu/diversity/culture.html#hispanic\">Hispanic &amp; Latino Americans</a>\r\n\r\nIf like me, you<em><strong> just never thought</strong></em>, I would encourage you to start thinking.  I cannot let another Halloween pass without writing this essay.\r\n\r\n<strong>Any costume that dresses you up as a real person, a real culture or actual people group implying that this identity can be boiled down to a recognizable outfit is wrong.  </strong>It is white people creating symbols to define other races and then appropriating those symbols without any acknowledgment of their history. There is no part of any culture or history that should become a synonym or a stereotype.  Here are a few examples:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Native indigenous cultures -- Anything Native American or “tribal” or for example<a title=\"Big Kahuna\" href=\"//www.amazon.com/Kahuna-Tribal-Tiki-Warrior-Costume/dp/B000EIGZ5C%3FSubscriptionId%3D19BAZMZQFZJ6G2QYGCG2%26tag%3Dsquidooa32991-\" target=\"_blank\"> this</a> “Big Kahuna Fat Tribal Tiki Warrior.</li>\r\n	<li>Or the use of “Asian” stereotypes of any sort.   Asian Americans are highly diverse, with dozens of ethnic backgrounds and languages, including individuals from Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Indonesian, Laotion, Philippine, Thai, and Vietnamese ancestry.  How can this be summed up, for example by these <a title=\"Glasses\" href=\"http://www.motifake.com/20741\">Chop Suey Specs</a>.   Or if you sound it out phonetically to make it “Asian-sounding” like the \'Fee Ling Yu Asian Man Halloween Mask.\' <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/ILLEGAL-ALIEN-400.jpg\"><img class=\"size-medium wp-image-1301 alignleft\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/ILLEGAL-ALIEN-400-240x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"192\" height=\"240\" /></a></li>\r\n	<li>Mexicans and other immigrants are not “illegal aliens” nor do all the other Latinos in the U.S. do not wear sombreros, over-sized mustache, and a poncho. I’m no <a title=\"Understanding Hispanic Culture\" href=\"http://old.diocesephoenix.org/fc/CatecheticalLeadership/ChurchDocs/UnderstandingtheHispanicCulture.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">expert</a>, but I think people that we call “Hispanics” or Latinos in the US come from <em>at least</em> 20 different countries and cultures including Colombian, Venezuelan, Mexican.  In the US we tend to lump them all together but they have beautiful and distinct languages, cultures and heritages.</li>\r\n	<li>Ghetto or Gangsta are in and of themselves parts of American culture that should not be mocked or stereotyped, if we don’t understand them.  I will be the first to admit the impulse to pull up or pull down the pants of young men that I see wearing their belt at their knees.  I find it silly, but even so things like the puzzling \"Tighty Whitey\" costume complete with a \"jumpsuit that makes it appear you are wearing your pants around your knees\" are wrong.  Rappers are culture in and of themselves whether you or I value it or not.</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nUniversity of Toronto researcher of stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination, Alison Chasteen <a href=\"http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2011/10/26/halloween-racist-costumes.html\" target=\"_blank\">noted</a>:\r\n<blockquote>\"We know from past research that exposure to stereotypical images can activate stereotypes in people\'s minds and influence their subsequent behavior…That is why efforts such as this one in Ohio are needed to educate people about racist images in an attempt to reduce stereotypical portrayals of minority groups.\"</blockquote>\r\nSome may say lighten up Melody!  It’s only in fun.  I’m not laughing.  And neither should you.  We cannot be a part of perpetuating racism and bigotry, no matter our reasons and especially not \"in fun.\"\r\n\r\nIt’s just not funny. This Halloween let’s respect and honor those that are different from us.  And, here\'s a crazy thought perhaps even learn more about that which we do not at first glance understand.\r\n\r\nOur friends deserve our respect.  And perhaps one day we will treasure them as much as our Lord did, for they (too) are made in God’s image.\r\n\r\nThen God said, \"Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.\" Genesis 1:26 NIV\r\n\r\nThe bottom line here:  Just think! <strong><em> </em></strong>\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Turn on your brain and open your heart.</em></strong>\r\n\r\nOther Resources:\r\n\r\nKudos to <a title=\"The Root\" href=\"http://www.theroot.com/multimedia/racially-insensitive-halloween-costumes\" target=\"_blank\">The Root</a> for pointing out these racially and culturally insensitive costumes.  If you don’t read The Root, you should.\r\n\r\nThanks to <a href=\"http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jarrah-hodge\">Jarrah Hodge</a> for some <a title=\"Cool Costume Ideas\" href=\"http://www.gender-focus.com/?s=costume&amp;searchbutton=go%21\" target=\"_blank\">cool costume ideas </a> and I can’t resist adding her list of<a title=\"Feminist Costumes\" href=\"http://www.gender-focus.com/2010/10/21/feminist-halloween-costumes/\" target=\"_blank\"> Feminist costume choices.\r\n</a>','We Are A Culture Not A Costume','','publish','open','open','','we-are-a-culture-not-a-costume','','\nhttp://www.gender-focus.com/2010/10/21/feminist-halloween-costumes/','2011-10-30 16:44:21','2011-10-30 23:44:21','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=1298',0,'post','',0),(833,0,'2011-10-20 08:58:43','2011-10-20 15:58:43','Provocative Biblical interpretation and social commentary - see the Scarlet Letter Bible website.\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Caspar Green\nAUTHOR EMAIL: caspar@ScarletLetterBible.com\nAUTHOR URL: http://ScarletLetterBible.com\nSUBJECT: Provoketive Magazine Writing For Proketive\nIP: 184.10.235.248\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Caspar Green\n    [Email] =&gt; caspar@ScarletLetterBible.com\n    [Existing Blog or Website] =&gt; http://ScarletLetterBible.com\n    [List the topic you are interested writing about] =&gt; Provocative Biblical interpretation and social commentary - see the Scarlet Letter Bible website.\n    [Current or New WordPress Login Name (We\'ll send you a password.)] =&gt; Caspar\n)\n','Caspar Green - 2011-10-20 08:58:43','','publish','open','open','','cda0f61074b32745ce372bc3efd522f5','','','2011-10-20 08:58:43','2011-10-20 15:58:43','',358,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=833',0,'feedback','',0),(834,1,'2011-10-20 08:59:48','2011-10-20 15:59:48','','Write_For_Provoketive','','inherit','open','open','','write_for_provoketive','','','2011-10-20 08:59:48','2011-10-20 15:59:48','',0,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Write_For_Provoketive.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(835,67,'2011-10-20 15:39:37','2011-10-20 22:39:37','Today, we\'ve witnessed the death of yet another enemy of the United States, and the world in General.  As I write this, the media outlets are exploding with the Grotesque pictures and videos of Moammar Gadhafi\'s death.  The celebrations are beginning.  The firsts are pumping.  The chanting is ringing out loud and clear.  \"USA!  USA!  USA!\"  Even within the American Church, rejoicing is evident.  I just received an email from a pastor friend of mine who made it clear that his revelry had begun.  \"Good riddance, huh?  Hope he \'s enjoying Hell!\"  Again, i sit here and meditate on what is transpiring and to be honest, I\'m deeply saddened and a bit ashamed.  Not ashamed at America; but ashamed at the Church.  I\'m not necessarily saddened that Gadhafi is dead, but how Christ followers are reacting in this \"Christian Nation\".  And it causes me to ask the question: Is America a Christian Nation?  And should it be considered such?\r\n\r\nI fully anticipate much anger directed toward me on at the words I’m writing.  But before the first stone is cast, let me begin by stating that within the world’s perspective, I feel that the death of Moammar Gaghafi is a good thing.  Like most Americans, I detest anything or anyone that stands in the way of the human right of freedom.  Gadhafi was a dictator and hindered the freedom that each and every Libyan deserves and is given to human beings by God.  With a heavy heart, I mourn the death of the innocent people who have died because of his action; deliberate or inadvertently.  I think about husbands, wives, mothers, fathers and children that have had their lives ripped apart because of the violence that has stemmed from his regime and ideologies.  I mourn the loss of the soldiers that have died over the years, fighting for freedom and to end terror and violence in this world.  I am proud of this country and thank God for the freedom I have each and every day; the same freedom I have to write this blog today.  I love this country, but loving my country does not relieve me of the responsibility I have in choosing where my allegiance lies and what Kingdom I choose to serve. As a follower of Christ, it’s imperative that I chose to view these events from a different perspective:  The Kingdom of God.  That’s the outlet that my emotions must rise from and the lens that I chose to view the events we witness today.\r\n\r\nSo, with that said, and knowing my perspective, it shouldn’t shock anyone to know that I am mourning the death of Moammar Gadhafi.  Like I said, I do believe that His death is a good thing and our world is safer from it, but I still mourn his death.  From beginning to end, this man’s life and America’s association with him has been nothing to rejoice.  The news we received today was simply the pinnacle of a long progression of war and death, and more than likely, not the end.  But war and death are not something to celebrate.  In the general scheme of things, the Kingdom of God has not been advanced one single inch by this man’s death.  To be honest, from an eternal perspective, what has transpired doesn\'t matter all that much.  War is not a sporting event and as much as we want to believe it, Jesus is not on our team.  He doesn’t rejoice at the death of Gadhafi and does not breathe a sigh of relief that America gained a few more points in the game.  We don’t win.\r\n\r\nWhat I do believe is that God is very much anticipating how each and every one of us is going to react today; not so much from an external perspective, but internal.  What do our hearts really feel at this moment?  What is the truth that will be taken from these events and what is God’s perspective on what has happened.  That’s the perspective that the Church needs to choose to view this from.  And a great deal of that perspective comes from Scripture.  But before I refer to the words of Christ, let me address one particular perspective that I’ve seen some folks using as a defense.\r\n\r\nMany people refer to some of the Old Testament examples of war, and how God seems to bless, approve and even rejoice in the victories of Israel.  It appears that by looking at these many references, God endorses war and rejoices in the victories of war.  I understand completely why some well intending Christians would use these examples as justification for America’s rejoicing today.  However, as with anything in Scripture, it’s vitally imperative that we look at this from a proper perspective.  The nation of Israel was God’s chosen people.  This was the people who He chose to build this world through.  These were the people who would begin the long progression of events that would bring Jesus Christ into this world and begin the eventual realization of the Kingdom of God coming to fruition.  These were <em>His </em>people, <em>His</em> nation, <em>His</em> mission and in essence, <em>His</em> wars.  In many ways, it was not the people of Israel fighting other nations, but God fighting <em>through</em> them to defend Himself, His honor, worship and glory.  When Israel celebrated the death and victory from war, in many ways it was God celebrating and the people glorified God more than they did the nation.  Israel celebrated in the Temple.  We celebrate at Starbucks.\r\n\r\nSo, flash forward several hundred years.  Things have changed.  Messiah has come.  Jesus has inaugurated the Kingdom of God and calls the people of Israel to start looking at things very differently.  In essence, Rome was terrorizing and oppressing God’s people and they wanted nothing more than for a political and military Messiah to rise up and smack Rome on its ass.  But instead, we start hearing things like, <em>“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’</em> <em>But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?  And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?  Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:43-48)  “But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.” (Matthew 5:39)  \"Put your sword back in its place,\" Jesus said to him, \"for all who draw the sword will die by the sword.” (Matthew 26:52)</em>\r\n\r\nThese are only three examples, but in the historical context of these references from the Gospel according to Matthew, Jesus is speaking to the Jews and more than likely referring to the Roman Empire.  I guarantee you that these words were not easy for Jesus’ followers to hear.  These teachings went against everything they felt, were taught and believed at that point, but Jesus was calling His followers, and all of us as well, to look at the world from a different perspective.  To open our view of “kingdom” and “nation” to more than just the borders that surround us.  To view brother and sister to include more than just those that we see each and every day.  In essence, Jesus was calling us to view the world from His perspective and not ours.  You won’t like hearing this, but God loved and created Moammar Gadhafi, longed for his salvation and knew the number of hairs on his head, just as he does for you and me.   And that leaves me with a sobering thought.  Would those that cheer his death, be the same one\'s cheering his salvation?  And how many of us actually prayed for his salvation over the years?\r\n\r\nThis does not diminish the death of the innocent that have lost their lives and does not take away from the fact that Gadhafi\'s death is somehow justified.  Like I said before, in reality, it is a good thing that he is gone and if you were to ask me if I am glad, in a deep dark place in my heart, I have to admit that I am.  My first reaction to the news was excitement and the urge to celebrate.  But after taking a few steps back, and asking myself the cliché\' question, \"What would Jesus do?\", for the life of me, and as hard as I try, I cannot imagine Him standing next to those celebrating and chanting, \"USA!  USA!  USA!\"','The Kingdom of God and the Death of Gadhafi','','publish','open','open','','the-kingdom-of-god-and-the-death-of-gadhafi','','','2011-10-20 15:40:14','2011-10-20 22:40:14','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=835',0,'post','',2),(836,67,'2011-10-20 09:04:07','2011-10-20 16:04:07','<h3>Today, we’ve witnessed the death of yet another enemy of the United States, and the world in general.  As I write this, media outlets are exploding with grotesque pictures and videos of Moammar Gadhafi’s death.  The celebrations are beginning.  The fists are pumping.  The chanting is ringing out loud and clear.  “USA!  USA!  USA!”   Even within the American Church, rejoicing is evident.  I just received an email from a pastor friend of mine who made it clear that his revelry had begun.  “Good riddance, huh?  Hope he’s enjoying Hell!”  Really?  You actually find reason to rejoice that someone God created is in Hell?  Again, I sit here and meditate on what is transpiring and to be honest, I’m deeply saddened and a bit ashamed.  Not ashamed at America; but ashamed at the church.  I’m not necessarily saddened that Gadhafi is dead, but how Christ followers are reacting in this “Christian Nation”.  And it caused me to ask the question:  Is America a Christian Nation?  Should it be?</h3>\nI fully anticipate much anger directed toward me on at the words I’m writing.  But before the first stone is cast, let me begin by stating that within the world’s perspective, I feel that the death of Moammar Gaghafi is a good thing.  Like most Americans, I detest anything or anyone that stands in the way of the human right of freedom.  Gadhafi was a dictator and hindered the freedom that each and every Libyan deserves and is given to human beings by God.  With a heavy heart, I mourn the death of the innocent people that have died because of his action; deliberate or inadvertently.  I think about husbands, wives, mothers, fathers and children that have had their lives ripped apart because of the violence that has stemmed from his regime and ideologies.  I mourn the loss of the soldiers that have died over the years, fighting for freedom and to end terror and violence in this world.  I am proud of this country and thank God for the freedom I have each and every day; the same freedom I have to write this blog today.  I love this country, but loving my country does not relieve me of the responsibility I have in choosing where my allegiance lies and what Kingdom I choose to serve. As a follower of Christ, it’s imperative that I chose to view these events from a different perspective:  The Kingdom of God.  That’s the outlet that my emotions must rise from and the lens that I chose to view the events we witness today.\n\nSo, with that said, and knowing my perspective, it shouldn’t shock anyone to know that I am mourning the death of Moammar Gadhafi.  Like I said, I do believe that His death is a good thing and our world is safer from it, but I still mourn his death.  From beginning to end, this man’s life and America’s association with him has been nothing to rejoice.  The news we received today was simply the pinnacle of a long progression of war and death, and more than likely, not the end.  But war and death are not something to celebrate.  In the general scheme of things, the Kingdom of God has not been advanced one single inch by this man’s death.  To be honest, from an eternal perspective, what has transpired doesn\'t matter all that much.  War is not a sporting event and as much as we want to believe it, Jesus is not on our team.  He doesn’t rejoice at the death of Gadhafi and does not breathe a sigh of relief that America gained a few more points in the game.  We don’t win.\n\nWhat I do believe is that God is very much anticipating how each and every one of us is going to react today; not so much from an external perspective, but internal.  What do our hearts really feel at this moment?  What is the truth that will be taken from these events and what is God’s perspective on what has happened.  That’s the perspective that the Church needs to choose to view this from.  And a great deal of that perspective comes from Scripture.  But before I refer to the words of Christ, let me address one particular perspective that I’ve seen some folks using as a defense.\n\nMany people refer to some of the Old Testament examples of war, and how God seems to bless, approve and even rejoice in the victories of Israel.  It appears that by looking at these many references, God endorses war and rejoices in the victories of war.  I understand completely why some well intending Christians would use these examples as justification for America’s rejoicing today.  However, as with anything in Scripture, it’s vitally imperative that we look at this from a proper perspective.  The nation of Israel was God’s chosen people.  This was the people that He chose to build this world through.  These were the people that would begin the long progression of events that would bring Jesus Christ into this world and begin the eventual realization of the Kingdom of God coming to fruition.  These were <em>His </em>people, <em>His</em> nation, <em>His</em> mission and in essence, <em>His</em> wars.  In many ways, it was not the people of Israel fighting other nations, but God fighting <em>through</em> them to defend Himself, His honor, worship and glory.  When Israel celebrated the death and victory from war, in many ways it was God celebrating and the people glorified God more than they did the nation.  Israel celebrated in the Temple.  We celebrate at Starbucks.\n\nSo, flash forward several hundred years.  Things have changed.  Messiah has come.  Jesus has inaugurated the Kingdom of God and calls the people of Israel to start looking at things very differently.  In essence, Rome was terrorizing and oppressing God’s people and they wanted nothing more than for a political and military Messiah to rise up and smack Rome on its ass.  But instead, we start hearing things like, <em>“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’</em> <em>But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?  And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?  Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:43-48)  “But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.” (Matthew 5:39)  \"Put your sword back in its place,\" Jesus said to him, \"for all who draw the sword will die by the sword.” (Matthew26:52)</em>\n\nThese are only three examples, but in the historical context of these references from the Gospel according to Matthew, Jesus is speaking to the Jews and more than likely referring to the Roman Empire.  I guarantee you that these words were not easy for Jesus’ followers to hear.  These teachings went against everything they felt, were taught and believed at that point, but Jesus was calling His followers, and all of us as well, to look at the world from a different perspective.  To open our view of “kingdom” and “nation” to more than just the borders that surround us.  To view brother and sister to include more than just those that we see each and every day.  In essence, Jesus was calling us to view the world from His perspective and not ours.  You won’t like hearing this, but God loved and created Moammar Gadhafi, longed for his salvation and knew the number of hairs on his head, just as he does for you and me.   And that leaves me with a sobering thought.  Would those that cheer his death, be the same one\'s cheering his salvation?  And how many of us actually prayed for his salvation over the years?\n<h3>This does not diminish the death of the innocent that have lost their lives and does not take away from the fact that Gadhafi’s death is justified.  Like I said before, in reality, it is a good thing that he is gone and if you were to ask me if I am glad, in a deep dark place in my heart, I have to admit that I am.  My first reaction to the news was excitement, joy and the urge to celebrate.  But taking a few steps back, and asking myself the cliche question, <em>“What would Jesus do?”</em>, for the life of me, and as hard as I tried, I could not image Him standing next to those celebrating and chanting, “USA!  USA!  USA!”</h3>','The Kingdom of God and the Death of Gadhafi','','inherit','open','open','','835-revision','','','2011-10-20 09:04:07','2011-10-20 16:04:07','',835,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/20/835-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(837,67,'2011-10-20 09:06:50','2011-10-20 16:06:50','<h3>Today, we’ve witnessed the death of yet another enemy of the United States, and the world in general.  As I write this, media outlets are exploding with grotesque pictures and videos of Moammar Gadhafi’s death.  The celebrations are beginning.  The fists are pumping.  The chanting is ringing out loud and clear.  “USA!  USA!  USA!”   Even within the American Church, rejoicing is evident.  I just received an email from a pastor friend of mine who made it clear that his revelry had begun.  “Good riddance, huh?  Hope he’s enjoying Hell!”  Really?  You actually find reason to rejoice that someone God created is in Hell?  Again, I sit here and meditate on what is transpiring and to be honest, I’m deeply saddened and a bit ashamed.  Not ashamed at America; but ashamed at the church.  I’m not necessarily saddened that Gadhafi is dead, but how Christ followers are reacting in this “Christian Nation”.  And it caused me to ask the question:  Is America a Christian Nation?  Should it be?</h3>\r\nI fully anticipate much anger directed toward me on at the words I’m writing.  But before the first stone is cast, let me begin by stating that within the world’s perspective, I feel that the death of Moammar Gaghafi is a good thing.  Like most Americans, I detest anything or anyone that stands in the way of the human right of freedom.  Gadhafi was a dictator and hindered the freedom that each and every Libyan deserves and is given to human beings by God.  With a heavy heart, I mourn the death of the innocent people that have died because of his action; deliberate or inadvertently.  I think about husbands, wives, mothers, fathers and children that have had their lives ripped apart because of the violence that has stemmed from his regime and ideologies.  I mourn the loss of the soldiers that have died over the years, fighting for freedom and to end terror and violence in this world.  I am proud of this country and thank God for the freedom I have each and every day; the same freedom I have to write this blog today.  I love this country, but loving my country does not relieve me of the responsibility I have in choosing where my allegiance lies and what Kingdom I choose to serve. As a follower of Christ, it’s imperative that I chose to view these events from a different perspective:  The Kingdom of God.  That’s the outlet that my emotions must rise from and the lens that I chose to view the events we witness today.\r\n\r\nSo, with that said, and knowing my perspective, it shouldn’t shock anyone to know that I am mourning the death of Moammar Gadhafi.  Like I said, I do believe that His death is a good thing and our world is safer from it, but I still mourn his death.  From beginning to end, this man’s life and America’s association with him has been nothing to rejoice.  The news we received today was simply the pinnacle of a long progression of war and death, and more than likely, not the end.  But war and death are not something to celebrate.  In the general scheme of things, the Kingdom of God has not been advanced one single inch by this man’s death.  To be honest, from an eternal perspective, what has transpired doesn\'t matter all that much.  War is not a sporting event and as much as we want to believe it, Jesus is not on our team.  He doesn’t rejoice at the death of Gadhafi and does not breathe a sigh of relief that America gained a few more points in the game.  We don’t win.\r\n\r\nWhat I do believe is that God is very much anticipating how each and every one of us is going to react today; not so much from an external perspective, but internal.  What do our hearts really feel at this moment?  What is the truth that will be taken from these events and what is God’s perspective on what has happened.  That’s the perspective that the Church needs to choose to view this from.  And a great deal of that perspective comes from Scripture.  But before I refer to the words of Christ, let me address one particular perspective that I’ve seen some folks using as a defense.\r\n\r\nMany people refer to some of the Old Testament examples of war, and how God seems to bless, approve and even rejoice in the victories of Israel.  It appears that by looking at these many references, God endorses war and rejoices in the victories of war.  I understand completely why some well intending Christians would use these examples as justification for America’s rejoicing today.  However, as with anything in Scripture, it’s vitally imperative that we look at this from a proper perspective.  The nation of Israel was God’s chosen people.  This was the people that He chose to build this world through.  These were the people that would begin the long progression of events that would bring Jesus Christ into this world and begin the eventual realization of the Kingdom of God coming to fruition.  These were <em>His </em>people, <em>His</em> nation, <em>His</em> mission and in essence, <em>His</em> wars.  In many ways, it was not the people of Israel fighting other nations, but God fighting <em>through</em> them to defend Himself, His honor, worship and glory.  When Israel celebrated the death and victory from war, in many ways it was God celebrating and the people glorified God more than they did the nation.  Israel celebrated in the Temple.  We celebrate at Starbucks.\r\n\r\nSo, flash forward several hundred years.  Things have changed.  Messiah has come.  Jesus has inaugurated the Kingdom of God and calls the people of Israel to start looking at things very differently.  In essence, Rome was terrorizing and oppressing God’s people and they wanted nothing more than for a political and military Messiah to rise up and smack Rome on its ass.  But instead, we start hearing things like, <em>“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’</em> <em>But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?  And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?  Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:43-48)  “But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.” (Matthew 5:39)  \"Put your sword back in its place,\" Jesus said to him, \"for all who draw the sword will die by the sword.” (Matthew26:52)</em>\r\n\r\nThese are only three examples, but in the historical context of these references from the Gospel according to Matthew, Jesus is speaking to the Jews and more than likely referring to the Roman Empire.  I guarantee you that these words were not easy for Jesus’ followers to hear.  These teachings went against everything they felt, were taught and believed at that point, but Jesus was calling His followers, and all of us as well, to look at the world from a different perspective.  To open our view of “kingdom” and “nation” to more than just the borders that surround us.  To view brother and sister to include more than just those that we see each and every day.  In essence, Jesus was calling us to view the world from His perspective and not ours.  You won’t like hearing this, but God loved and created Moammar Gadhafi, longed for his salvation and knew the number of hairs on his head, just as he does for you and me.   And that leaves me with a sobering thought.  Would those that cheer his death, be the same one\'s cheering his salvation?  And how many of us actually prayed for his salvation over the years?\r\n<h3>This does not diminish the death of the innocent that have lost their lives and does not take away from the fact that Gadhafi’s death is justified.  Like I said before, in reality, it is a good thing that he is gone and if you were to ask me if I am glad, in a deep dark place in my heart, I have to admit that I am.  My first reaction to the news was excitement, joy and the urge to celebrate.  But taking a few steps back, and asking myself the cliche question, <em>“What would Jesus do?”</em>, for the life of me, and as hard as I tried, I could not image Him standing next to those celebrating and chanting, “USA!  USA!  USA!”</h3>','The Kingdom of God and the Death of Gadhafi','','inherit','open','open','','835-revision-2','','','2011-10-20 09:06:50','2011-10-20 16:06:50','',835,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/20/835-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(838,67,'2011-10-20 09:18:57','2011-10-20 16:18:57','Today, we\'ve witnessed the death of yet another enemy of the United States, and the world in General.  As I write this, the media outlets are exploding with the Grotesque pictures and videos of Moammar Gadhafi\'s death.  The celebrations are beginning.  The firsts are pumping.  The chanting is ringing out loud and clear.  \"USA!  USA!  USA!\"  Even within the American Church, rejoicing is evident.  I just received an email from a pastor friend of mine who made it clear that his revelry had begun.  \"Good riddance, huh?  Hope he \'s enjoying Hell!\"  Again, i sit here and meditate on what is transpiring and to be honest, I\'m deeply saddened and a bit ashamed.  Not ashamed at America; but ashamed at the Church.  I\'m not necessarily saddened that Gadhafi is dead, but how Christ followers are reacting in this \"Christian Nation\".  And it causes me to ask the question: Is America a Christian Nation?  And should it be considered such?\n\nI fully anticipate much anger directed toward me on at the words I’m writing.  But before the first stone is cast, let me begin by stating that within the world’s perspective, I feel that the death of Moammar Gaghafi is a good thing.  Like most Americans, I detest anything or anyone that stands in the way of the human right of freedom.  Gadhafi was a dictator and hindered the freedom that each and every Libyan deserves and is given to human beings by God.  With a heavy heart, I mourn the death of the innocent people that have died because of his action; deliberate or inadvertently.  I think about husbands, wives, mothers, fathers and children that have had their lives ripped apart because of the violence that has stemmed from his regime and ideologies.  I mourn the loss of the soldiers that have died over the years, fighting for freedom and to end terror and violence in this world.  I am proud of this country and thank God for the freedom I have each and every day; the same freedom I have to write this blog today.  I love this country, but loving my country does not relieve me of the responsibility I have in choosing where my allegiance lies and what Kingdom I choose to serve. As a follower of Christ, it’s imperative that I chose to view these events from a different perspective:  The Kingdom of God.  That’s the outlet that my emotions must rise from and the lens that I chose to view the events we witness today.\n\nSo, with that said, and knowing my perspective, it shouldn’t shock anyone to know that I am mourning the death of Moammar Gadhafi.  Like I said, I do believe that His death is a good thing and our world is safer from it, but I still mourn his death.  From beginning to end, this man’s life and America’s association with him has been nothing to rejoice.  The news we received today was simply the pinnacle of a long progression of war and death, and more than likely, not the end.  But war and death are not something to celebrate.  In the general scheme of things, the Kingdom of God has not been advanced one single inch by this man’s death.  To be honest, from an eternal perspective, what has transpired doesn\'t matter all that much.  War is not a sporting event and as much as we want to believe it, Jesus is not on our team.  He doesn’t rejoice at the death of Gadhafi and does not breathe a sigh of relief that America gained a few more points in the game.  We don’t win.\n\nWhat I do believe is that God is very much anticipating how each and every one of us is going to react today; not so much from an external perspective, but internal.  What do our hearts really feel at this moment?  What is the truth that will be taken from these events and what is God’s perspective on what has happened.  That’s the perspective that the Church needs to choose to view this from.  And a great deal of that perspective comes from Scripture.  But before I refer to the words of Christ, let me address one particular perspective that I’ve seen some folks using as a defense.\n\nMany people refer to some of the Old Testament examples of war, and how God seems to bless, approve and even rejoice in the victories of Israel.  It appears that by looking at these many references, God endorses war and rejoices in the victories of war.  I understand completely why some well intending Christians would use these examples as justification for America’s rejoicing today.  However, as with anything in Scripture, it’s vitally imperative that we look at this from a proper perspective.  The nation of Israel was God’s chosen people.  This was the people that He chose to build this world through.  These were the people that would begin the long progression of events that would bring Jesus Christ into this world and begin the eventual realization of the Kingdom of God coming to fruition.  These were <em>His </em>people, <em>His</em> nation, <em>His</em> mission and in essence, <em>His</em> wars.  In many ways, it was not the people of Israel fighting other nations, but God fighting <em>through</em> them to defend Himself, His honor, worship and glory.  When Israel celebrated the death and victory from war, in many ways it was God celebrating and the people glorified God more than they did the nation.  Israel celebrated in the Temple.  We celebrate at Starbucks.\n\nSo, flash forward several hundred years.  Things have changed.  Messiah has come.  Jesus has inaugurated the Kingdom of God and calls the people of Israel to start looking at things very differently.  In essence, Rome was terrorizing and oppressing God’s people and they wanted nothing more than for a political and military Messiah to rise up and smack Rome on its ass.  But instead, we start hearing things like, <em>“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’</em> <em>But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?  And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?  Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:43-48)  “But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.” (Matthew 5:39)  \"Put your sword back in its place,\" Jesus said to him, \"for all who draw the sword will die by the sword.” (Matthew26:52)</em>\n\nThese are only three examples, but in the historical context of these references from the Gospel according to Matthew, Jesus is speaking to the Jews and more than likely referring to the Roman Empire.  I guarantee you that these words were not easy for Jesus’ followers to hear.  These teachings went against everything they felt, were taught and believed at that point, but Jesus was calling His followers, and all of us as well, to look at the world from a different perspective.  To open our view of “kingdom” and “nation” to more than just the borders that surround us.  To view brother and sister to include more than just those that we see each and every day.  In essence, Jesus was calling us to view the world from His perspective and not ours.  You won’t like hearing this, but God loved and created Moammar Gadhafi, longed for his salvation and knew the number of hairs on his head, just as he does for you and me.   And that leaves me with a sobering thought.  Would those that cheer his death, be the same one\'s cheering his salvation?  And how many of us actually prayed for his salvation over the years?\n\nThis does not diminish the death of the innocent that have lost their lives and does not take away from the fact that Gadhafi\'s death is somehow justified.  Like I said before, in reality, it is a good thing that he is gone and if you were to ask me if I am glad, in a deep dark place in my heart, I have to admit that I am.  My first reaction to the news was excitement and the urge to celebrate.  But after taking a few steps back, and asking myself the cliche\' question, \"What would Jesus do?\", for the life of me, and as hard as I try, I cannot imagine Him standing next to those celebrating and chanting, \"USA!  USA!  USA!\"\n<h3></h3>','The Kingdom of God and the Death of Gadhafi','','inherit','open','open','','835-revision-3','','','2011-10-20 09:18:57','2011-10-20 16:18:57','',835,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/20/835-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(839,67,'2011-10-20 09:22:18','2011-10-20 16:22:18','','Muammar-Gaddafi-007','','inherit','open','open','','muammar-gaddafi-007','','','2011-10-20 09:22:18','2011-10-20 16:22:18','',835,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Muammar-Gaddafi-007.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(840,67,'2011-10-20 09:23:50','2011-10-20 16:23:50','Today, we\'ve witnessed the death of yet another enemy of the United States, and the world in General.  As I write this, the media outlets are exploding with the Grotesque pictures and videos of Moammar Gadhafi\'s death.  The celebrations are beginning.  The firsts are pumping.  The chanting is ringing out loud and clear.  \"USA!  USA!  USA!\"  Even within the American Church, rejoicing is evident.  I just received an email from a pastor friend of mine who made it clear that his revelry had begun.  \"Good riddance, huh?  Hope he \'s enjoying Hell!\"  Again, i sit here and meditate on what is transpiring and to be honest, I\'m deeply saddened and a bit ashamed.  Not ashamed at America; but ashamed at the Church.  I\'m not necessarily saddened that Gadhafi is dead, but how Christ followers are reacting in this \"Christian Nation\".  And it causes me to ask the question: Is America a Christian Nation?  And should it be considered such?\n\nI fully anticipate much anger directed toward me on at the words I’m writing.  But before the first stone is cast, let me begin by stating that within the world’s perspective, I feel that the death of Moammar Gaghafi is a good thing.  Like most Americans, I detest anything or anyone that stands in the way of the human right of freedom.  Gadhafi was a dictator and hindered the freedom that each and every Libyan deserves and is given to human beings by God.  With a heavy heart, I mourn the death of the innocent people who have died because of his action; deliberate or inadvertently.  I think about husbands, wives, mothers, fathers and children that have had their lives ripped apart because of the violence that has stemmed from his regime and ideologies.  I mourn the loss of the soldiers that have died over the years, fighting for freedom and to end terror and violence in this world.  I am proud of this country and thank God for the freedom I have each and every day; the same freedom I have to write this blog today.  I love this country, but loving my country does not relieve me of the responsibility I have in choosing where my allegiance lies and what Kingdom I choose to serve. As a follower of Christ, it’s imperative that I chose to view these events from a different perspective:  The Kingdom of God.  That’s the outlet that my emotions must rise from and the lens that I chose to view the events we witness today.\n\nSo, with that said, and knowing my perspective, it shouldn’t shock anyone to know that I am mourning the death of Moammar Gadhafi.  Like I said, I do believe that His death is a good thing and our world is safer from it, but I still mourn his death.  From beginning to end, this man’s life and America’s association with him has been nothing to rejoice.  The news we received today was simply the pinnacle of a long progression of war and death, and more than likely, not the end.  But war and death are not something to celebrate.  In the general scheme of things, the Kingdom of God has not been advanced one single inch by this man’s death.  To be honest, from an eternal perspective, what has transpired doesn\'t matter all that much.  War is not a sporting event and as much as we want to believe it, Jesus is not on our team.  He doesn’t rejoice at the death of Gadhafi and does not breathe a sigh of relief that America gained a few more points in the game.  We don’t win.\n\nWhat I do believe is that God is very much anticipating how each and every one of us is going to react today; not so much from an external perspective, but internal.  What do our hearts really feel at this moment?  What is the truth that will be taken from these events and what is God’s perspective on what has happened.  That’s the perspective that the Church needs to choose to view this from.  And a great deal of that perspective comes from Scripture.  But before I refer to the words of Christ, let me address one particular perspective that I’ve seen some folks using as a defense.\n\nMany people refer to some of the Old Testament examples of war, and how God seems to bless, approve and even rejoice in the victories of Israel.  It appears that by looking at these many references, God endorses war and rejoices in the victories of war.  I understand completely why some well intending Christians would use these examples as justification for America’s rejoicing today.  However, as with anything in Scripture, it’s vitally imperative that we look at this from a proper perspective.  The nation of Israel was God’s chosen people.  This was the people who He chose to build this world through.  These were the people who would begin the long progression of events that would bring Jesus Christ into this world and begin the eventual realization of the Kingdom of God coming to fruition.  These were <em>His </em>people, <em>His</em> nation, <em>His</em> mission and in essence, <em>His</em> wars.  In many ways, it was not the people of Israel fighting other nations, but God fighting <em>through</em> them to defend Himself, His honor, worship and glory.  When Israel celebrated the death and victory from war, in many ways it was God celebrating and the people glorified God more than they did the nation.  Israel celebrated in the Temple.  We celebrate at Starbucks.\n\nSo, flash forward several hundred years.  Things have changed.  Messiah has come.  Jesus has inaugurated the Kingdom of God and calls the people of Israel to start looking at things very differently.  In essence, Rome was terrorizing and oppressing God’s people and they wanted nothing more than for a political and military Messiah to rise up and smack Rome on its ass.  But instead, we start hearing things like, <em>“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’</em> <em>But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?  And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?  Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:43-48)  “But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.” (Matthew 5:39)  \"Put your sword back in its place,\" Jesus said to him, \"for all who draw the sword will die by the sword.” (Matthew26:52)</em>\n\nThese are only three examples, but in the historical context of these references from the Gospel according to Matthew, Jesus is speaking to the Jews and more than likely referring to the Roman Empire.  I guarantee you that these words were not easy for Jesus’ followers to hear.  These teachings went against everything they felt, were taught and believed at that point, but Jesus was calling His followers, and all of us as well, to look at the world from a different perspective.  To open our view of “kingdom” and “nation” to more than just the borders that surround us.  To view brother and sister to include more than just those that we see each and every day.  In essence, Jesus was calling us to view the world from His perspective and not ours.  You won’t like hearing this, but God loved and created Moammar Gadhafi, longed for his salvation and knew the number of hairs on his head, just as he does for you and me.   And that leaves me with a sobering thought.  Would those that cheer his death, be the same one\'s cheering his salvation?  And how many of us actually prayed for his salvation over the years?\n\nThis does not diminish the death of the innocent that have lost their lives and does not take away from the fact that Gadhafi\'s death is somehow justified.  Like I said before, in reality, it is a good thing that he is gone and if you were to ask me if I am glad, in a deep dark place in my heart, I have to admit that I am.  My first reaction to the news was excitement and the urge to celebrate.  But after taking a few steps back, and asking myself the cliché\' question, \"What would Jesus do?\", for the life of me, and as hard as I try, I cannot imagine Him standing next to those celebrating and chanting, \"USA!  USA!  USA!\"\n<h3></h3>','The Kingdom of God and the Death of Gadhafi','','inherit','open','open','','835-revision-4','','','2011-10-20 09:23:50','2011-10-20 16:23:50','',835,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/20/835-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(841,67,'2011-10-20 09:24:21','2011-10-20 16:24:21','Today, we\'ve witnessed the death of yet another enemy of the United States, and the world in General.  As I write this, the media outlets are exploding with the Grotesque pictures and videos of Moammar Gadhafi\'s death.  The celebrations are beginning.  The firsts are pumping.  The chanting is ringing out loud and clear.  \"USA!  USA!  USA!\"  Even within the American Church, rejoicing is evident.  I just received an email from a pastor friend of mine who made it clear that his revelry had begun.  \"Good riddance, huh?  Hope he \'s enjoying Hell!\"  Again, i sit here and meditate on what is transpiring and to be honest, I\'m deeply saddened and a bit ashamed.  Not ashamed at America; but ashamed at the Church.  I\'m not necessarily saddened that Gadhafi is dead, but how Christ followers are reacting in this \"Christian Nation\".  And it causes me to ask the question: Is America a Christian Nation?  And should it be considered such?\r\n\r\nI fully anticipate much anger directed toward me on at the words I’m writing.  But before the first stone is cast, let me begin by stating that within the world’s perspective, I feel that the death of Moammar Gaghafi is a good thing.  Like most Americans, I detest anything or anyone that stands in the way of the human right of freedom.  Gadhafi was a dictator and hindered the freedom that each and every Libyan deserves and is given to human beings by God.  With a heavy heart, I mourn the death of the innocent people who have died because of his action; deliberate or inadvertently.  I think about husbands, wives, mothers, fathers and children that have had their lives ripped apart because of the violence that has stemmed from his regime and ideologies.  I mourn the loss of the soldiers that have died over the years, fighting for freedom and to end terror and violence in this world.  I am proud of this country and thank God for the freedom I have each and every day; the same freedom I have to write this blog today.  I love this country, but loving my country does not relieve me of the responsibility I have in choosing where my allegiance lies and what Kingdom I choose to serve. As a follower of Christ, it’s imperative that I chose to view these events from a different perspective:  The Kingdom of God.  That’s the outlet that my emotions must rise from and the lens that I chose to view the events we witness today.\r\n\r\nSo, with that said, and knowing my perspective, it shouldn’t shock anyone to know that I am mourning the death of Moammar Gadhafi.  Like I said, I do believe that His death is a good thing and our world is safer from it, but I still mourn his death.  From beginning to end, this man’s life and America’s association with him has been nothing to rejoice.  The news we received today was simply the pinnacle of a long progression of war and death, and more than likely, not the end.  But war and death are not something to celebrate.  In the general scheme of things, the Kingdom of God has not been advanced one single inch by this man’s death.  To be honest, from an eternal perspective, what has transpired doesn\'t matter all that much.  War is not a sporting event and as much as we want to believe it, Jesus is not on our team.  He doesn’t rejoice at the death of Gadhafi and does not breathe a sigh of relief that America gained a few more points in the game.  We don’t win.\r\n\r\nWhat I do believe is that God is very much anticipating how each and every one of us is going to react today; not so much from an external perspective, but internal.  What do our hearts really feel at this moment?  What is the truth that will be taken from these events and what is God’s perspective on what has happened.  That’s the perspective that the Church needs to choose to view this from.  And a great deal of that perspective comes from Scripture.  But before I refer to the words of Christ, let me address one particular perspective that I’ve seen some folks using as a defense.\r\n\r\nMany people refer to some of the Old Testament examples of war, and how God seems to bless, approve and even rejoice in the victories of Israel.  It appears that by looking at these many references, God endorses war and rejoices in the victories of war.  I understand completely why some well intending Christians would use these examples as justification for America’s rejoicing today.  However, as with anything in Scripture, it’s vitally imperative that we look at this from a proper perspective.  The nation of Israel was God’s chosen people.  This was the people who He chose to build this world through.  These were the people who would begin the long progression of events that would bring Jesus Christ into this world and begin the eventual realization of the Kingdom of God coming to fruition.  These were <em>His </em>people, <em>His</em> nation, <em>His</em> mission and in essence, <em>His</em> wars.  In many ways, it was not the people of Israel fighting other nations, but God fighting <em>through</em> them to defend Himself, His honor, worship and glory.  When Israel celebrated the death and victory from war, in many ways it was God celebrating and the people glorified God more than they did the nation.  Israel celebrated in the Temple.  We celebrate at Starbucks.\r\n\r\nSo, flash forward several hundred years.  Things have changed.  Messiah has come.  Jesus has inaugurated the Kingdom of God and calls the people of Israel to start looking at things very differently.  In essence, Rome was terrorizing and oppressing God’s people and they wanted nothing more than for a political and military Messiah to rise up and smack Rome on its ass.  But instead, we start hearing things like, <em>“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’</em> <em>But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?  And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?  Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:43-48)  “But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.” (Matthew 5:39)  \"Put your sword back in its place,\" Jesus said to him, \"for all who draw the sword will die by the sword.” (Matthew 26:52)</em>\r\n\r\nThese are only three examples, but in the historical context of these references from the Gospel according to Matthew, Jesus is speaking to the Jews and more than likely referring to the Roman Empire.  I guarantee you that these words were not easy for Jesus’ followers to hear.  These teachings went against everything they felt, were taught and believed at that point, but Jesus was calling His followers, and all of us as well, to look at the world from a different perspective.  To open our view of “kingdom” and “nation” to more than just the borders that surround us.  To view brother and sister to include more than just those that we see each and every day.  In essence, Jesus was calling us to view the world from His perspective and not ours.  You won’t like hearing this, but God loved and created Moammar Gadhafi, longed for his salvation and knew the number of hairs on his head, just as he does for you and me.   And that leaves me with a sobering thought.  Would those that cheer his death, be the same one\'s cheering his salvation?  And how many of us actually prayed for his salvation over the years?\r\n\r\nThis does not diminish the death of the innocent that have lost their lives and does not take away from the fact that Gadhafi\'s death is somehow justified.  Like I said before, in reality, it is a good thing that he is gone and if you were to ask me if I am glad, in a deep dark place in my heart, I have to admit that I am.  My first reaction to the news was excitement and the urge to celebrate.  But after taking a few steps back, and asking myself the cliché\' question, \"What would Jesus do?\", for the life of me, and as hard as I try, I cannot imagine Him standing next to those celebrating and chanting, \"USA!  USA!  USA!\"\r\n<h3></h3>','The Kingdom of God and the Death of Gadhafi','','inherit','open','open','','835-revision-5','','','2011-10-20 09:24:21','2011-10-20 16:24:21','',835,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/20/835-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(842,24,'2011-10-20 10:47:18','2011-10-20 17:47:18','[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zpssk85XTQQ]\n\nSo as you watch this clip who to you associate your self with? Is it Aragorn and his strength, Legolas and his skill, Gandalf with his power, Frodo with a mission or Gimli with his ferocity? Maybe I feel a little less noble and strong maybe I can really relate to Boromir and his attempts to be noble, but his lust for power gets to him, or I feel like Sam the good friend of someone with a mission and I want to make sure they feel supported.  I have and do feel many times like Merry and &amp; Pippin lost in self-gratification not knowing what to do.\n\nThis scene had a profound unexpected effect on me. I was shocked to see how my heart reacted to the characters, I lost focus on the hero\'s, their companions, I was caught off guard by the profound amount of emotion and empanthy I felt for the \"Cave Troll.\"\n\nIn the scene you can see that this \"Troll\" has a chain around his neck. This brings up some questions.\nIs he someones pet?\nWhat was he like as a little cave troll?\nWhat did they do to him to shape him into this angry, violent monster?\n\nWhat if one of our \"heroes\" knew the troll language, or had some troll food. Could this enemy have been tamed, befriended or at least set free?\n\nThe real question for me is who or what is my enemy? I was told my entire life about a Devil who was out to destroy my life. I was told that he uses music, movies, seductive women, drugs and temptations of all kinds to seduce me into darkness. I needed to defend the faith, to battle the devil and his kingdom of darkness through prayer, scripture declarations and even fasting.\n\nJesus seemed at ease around these supposed enemies. Even during  his great temptation in the desert the enemy could find \"no place in him.\" He did not defend himself or argue doctrines or beliefs with this enemy. Jesus\' lack of defense revealed a supreme security.\n\nPersonally I have spent so much time in my life polarizing people, groups, beliefs into some sort of enemy. That way I know who I can criticize, judge, inflict punishment on. At the same time I have hidden and defended my pain, projected my judgement\'s and fear on all sorts of people. Always imagining that I am Aragorn fighting for some lost freedom.\n\nMatthew 11:12\nFrom the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and violent men take it by force.\n\nReality sets in and I realize, \"I\'m the Troll.\" I am the real enemy. My fear and pain have been my shelter, I have allowed myself to be used and abused to hopefully find somewhere to belong. I have a big chain around my neck, I\'m tired, hungry and dying.\n\nMay whatever you feel you need to defend find peace in giving up the need to have enemies. For if I love my enemies, I suddenly do not have any.\n\nNothing Real can be threatened.\nNothing unreal exists.\nHerein lies the Peace of God.\n- A Course in Miracles','Defense is the first act of War','','inherit','open','open','','497-revision-10','','','2011-10-20 10:47:18','2011-10-20 17:47:18','',497,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/20/497-revision-10/',0,'revision','',0),(843,24,'2011-11-02 08:00:47','2011-11-02 15:00:47','<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Rick2.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-1249\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Rick2-275x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"275\" height=\"300\" /></a>\r\n<div>Pain invited my ear, \"Listen to me, for I have knowledge of Truth hidden in what you fear.\"Fear roared, \"Do not listen to pain, it will only lead you to more discomfort!\"Shame whimpered, \"Remember everything that has happened to you, everyone despises you. This will not work.\"Courage invoked, \"All fear is an illusion, walk straight ahead!\"\r\n\r\nPride demanded, \"You have everything you need already, this is a waste of time.\"\r\n\r\nLove whispered, \"Go into this pain, it is safe. You will only discover more to love.\"\r\n\r\nEver notice how throughout a day your feelings  interpret? As you become aware of these feelings they usually lead you to thoughts. It appears that these thoughts are constructed as demands for answers to arise; such as why is this happening to me? Why did I not get noticed? These thoughts are ideas about yourself, others and how life is either giving or taking from you. Few question these thoughts, or face the idea\'s of being separate, alone and unwanted.\r\n\r\n<strong>What would life be like if we embraced all of it? What would we be like if we stopped avoiding pain and ran into what we have been taught to fear.</strong>\r\n\r\nWhy do we stop going to the gym? Because we no longer engage with the benefits the pain brings us. This benefit is strength.\r\nWhy do we fear the dentist? His cleaning, shots and drilling give our teeth longevity.\r\nWhy do we fear conflict or confrontation with people? Will it not expose the lies and assumptions we hide behind.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/pain1.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-1171\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/pain1-300x226.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"226\" /></a><strong>SEARCHING IN THE WRONG PLACE</strong>\r\nA neighbour found Jon on his  hands and knees.\r\n“What are you searching for Jon?” “My key.”\r\nBoth men got on their knees to search.\r\nAfter a while the neighbor says, “Where did you lose it?”\r\n“At home.”\r\n“Good Lord! Then why are you searching here?”\r\n“Because it’s brighter here.”\r\n\r\n<strong>The key to discovering Love is searching where you left it</strong>.\r\nUntil you have the courage and the an environment which allows you to fall apart, breakdown and let go, you will not experience the Life/Truth/Experience Jesus spoke from. Jesus was not a command but an invitation to give up the meaning we have given our lives. To lose it all for the Truth. The Truth that you have never been alone, you have never been unloved, rejected and hated. People always gave you their best, since they could only give you what they had.\r\n\r\nSearch for Love where you lost it. Where did you learn to stop loving yourself? Where did you learn that what you did was not good enough? Who told you that you were worthless, meaningless and annoying? Let anger come up, let grief stay for a while, let all the desires pushed down and forgotten come up and cry aloud.\r\n\r\nWe have worked hard seeking love in the places we were told it was hidden. Our careers, education, titles, accomplishments and activities were supposed to be the givers of meaning to our lives.\r\n\r\nAs an exercise slow down for a minute and look at these phrases below. Honestly observe which one seems to resonate with your heart:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>I work to have value vs. my value determines my work.</li>\r\n	<li>I seek love/acceptance from others vs. I love and accept everything as it is now.</li>\r\n	<li>I am only noticeable when what I do matters vs. I notice the effort and meaning the people around me are contributing.</li>\r\n	<li>My body/beauty are determined by comparing myself to others vs. I view the world from this body, not for it.</li>\r\n	<li>I will get what I want my way vs. I will be kind to everyone and everything no matter what.</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nThe next time you find yourself in a painful situation, instead of looking for a way out, face it, welcome it and allow yourself to feel it deeply. Give pains cry for attention your full focus. You might be surprised at the amazing discoveries that await you on this journey inward.\r\n\r\n</div>\r\n<strong>WHY BAD STUFF HAPPENS\r\n</strong><em>by Elsa Joy Bailey</em>\r\n\r\nIf it weren\'t for my beautiful sad mother\r\ndrinking a beaker of cold cyanide when I was three,\r\nI wouldn\'t have learned\r\nshe could both love and abandon me\r\nin one hot severe breath.\r\nNor would I have grown flowers in my heart\r\nfor people who urgently want to die.\r\n\r\nIf I had not broken my leg in a wild fall,\r\nI wouldn\'t have learned that stark physical pain\r\nis, to my great surprise, not permanent.\r\n\r\nIf I hadn\'t fallen in love with someone\r\nwho didn\'t love me,\r\nI would never have realized that unrequited love\r\nis still an ecstatic dance of the heart.\r\n\r\nIf I hadn\'t encountered praise and blame,\r\nsuccess and failure, heat and cold, darkness and light,\r\nblows and kisses, pain and bliss,\r\nnever would I have found out that through it all\r\nthere is a Spirit within me\r\nwhich remains unceasingly alive and loving.\r\n\r\nIf I hadn\'t received the gift of knowing you,\r\nI would not have come to realise\r\nthat our stories are different in details,\r\nbut never in essence.\r\n\r\nIf I hadn\'t lived through an era of hurting\r\nI would never have met the miracle\r\nof being fed with kindness by a friend.\r\n\r\nIf I hadn\'t discovered that you and I\r\nare two threads in the same vast cloth,\r\nI would have remained forever lost and imprisoned\r\nin my separate universe.\r\n\r\nIf I hadn\'t seen both good and evil\r\noccupying space in the same event,\r\nI would never have met the hand of humour\r\npainting over these polarities\r\nwith new clarity and light.\r\n\r\nIf I hadn\'t wept a thousand tears\r\nover the loss of a beloved,\r\nI would never have been driven inward\r\nto find the eternal companion,\r\nmy Soul.\r\n\r\nIf I had not witnessed cruelty\r\nand man\'s inhumanity to man,\r\nI would not have been forced to look\r\nbeneath the ugliness of fear,\r\nand encounter the common Heart\r\nthat lies beneath it.\r\n\r\nIf I hadn\'t encountered our myriad differences,\r\nI would never have discovered that you and I\r\nare not two,\r\nbut infinite sparks of love ever arising\r\nfrom one indestructible Flame.\r\n\r\nAnd if I hadn\'t felt abandoned and heartsick,\r\nI would never have heard the wordless whisper\r\nof an abiding, unseeable Friend,\r\nwho translated the feeling of alone\r\ninto All One.','Pain Demands an Answer','','publish','open','open','','pain-demands-an-answer','','','2011-11-01 09:07:58','2011-11-01 16:07:58','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=843',0,'post','',0),(844,24,'2011-10-20 11:09:42','2011-10-20 18:09:42','Pain invited my ear, \"Listen to me, for I have knowledge of Truth hidden in what you fear.\"\n\nFear roared, \"Do not look or listen to pain, it will only lead you to more discomfort!\"\n\nLove whispered, \"Go into this pain, it is safe. You will only discover more to love.\"\n\nShame whimpered, \"Remember everything that has happened to you, everyone despises you. This\n\n&nbsp;\n\nWHY BADSTUFF HAPPENS\n<em>by Elsa Joy Bailey</em>\n\nIf it weren\'t for my beautiful sad mother\ndrinking a beaker of cold cyanide when I was three,\nI wouldn\'t have learned\nshe could both love and abandon me\nin one hot severe breath.\nNor would I have grown flowers in my heart\nfor people who urgently want to die.\n\nIf I had not broken my leg in a wild fall,\nI wouldn\'t have learned that stark physical pain\nis, to my great surprise, not permanent.\n\nIf I hadn\'t fallen in love with someone\nwho didn\'t love me,\nI would never have realized that unrequited love\nis still an ecstatic dance of the heart.\n\nIf I hadn\'t encountered praise and blame,\nsuccess and failure, heat and cold, darkness and light,\nblows and kisses, pain and bliss,\nnever would I have found out that through it all\nthere is a Spirit within me\nwhich remains unceasingly alive and loving.\n\nIf I hadn\'t received the gift of knowing you,\nI would not have come to realise\nthat our stories are different in details,\nbut never in essence.\n\nIf I hadn\'t lived through an era of hurting\nI would never have met the miracle\nof being fed with kindness by a friend.\n\nIf I hadn\'t discovered that you and I\nare two threads in the same vast cloth,\nI would have remained forever lost and imprisoned\nin my separate universe.\n\nIf I hadn\'t seen both good and evil\noccupying space in the same event,\nI would never have met the hand of humour\npainting over these polarities\nwith new clarity and light.\n\nIf I hadn\'t wept a thousand tears\nover the loss of a beloved,\nI would never have been driven inward\nto find the eternal companion,\nmy Soul.\n\n\nIf I had not witnessed cruelty\nand man\'s inhumanity to man,\nI would not have been forced to look\nbeneath the ugliness of fear,\nand encounter the common Heart\nthat lies beneath it.\n\nIf I hadn\'t encountered our myriad differences,\nI would never have discovered that you and I\nare not two,\nbut infinite sparks of love ever arising\nfrom one indestructible Flame.\n\nAnd if I hadn\'t felt abandoned and heartsick,\nI would never have heard the wordless whisper\nof an abiding, unseeable Friend,\nwho translated the feeling of alone\ninto All One.','Pain a wonderful Teacher','','inherit','open','open','','843-revision','','','2011-10-20 11:09:42','2011-10-20 18:09:42','',843,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/20/843-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(845,24,'2011-10-20 11:35:38','2011-10-20 18:35:38','Pain invited my ear, \"Listen to me, for I have knowledge of Truth hidden in what you fear.\"\n\nFear roared, \"Do not look or listen to pain, it will only lead you to more discomfort!\"\n\nLove whispered, \"Go into this pain, it is safe. You will only discover more to love.\"\n\nShame whimpered, \"Remember everything that has happened to you, everyone despises you. This will not work.\"\n\nCourage invoked, \"All fear is an illusion, walk straight ahead!\"\n\nPride demanded, \"You have everything you need already, this is a waste of time.\"\n\nEver notice how throughout a day what you are  feeling will interpret reality for you. As you follow these feelings they usually lead you to thoughts. These thought are ideas about your self, others and how life is playing out. Few questions these thoughts, few face the idea\'s of being separate, alone and unwanted. We tend to settle for a hope of one day getting what we want so we can be happy.\n\n&nbsp;\n\nWHY BADSTUFF HAPPENS\n<em>by Elsa Joy Bailey</em>\n\nIf it weren\'t for my beautiful sad mother\ndrinking a beaker of cold cyanide when I was three,\nI wouldn\'t have learned\nshe could both love and abandon me\nin one hot severe breath.\nNor would I have grown flowers in my heart\nfor people who urgently want to die.\n\nIf I had not broken my leg in a wild fall,\nI wouldn\'t have learned that stark physical pain\nis, to my great surprise, not permanent.\n\nIf I hadn\'t fallen in love with someone\nwho didn\'t love me,\nI would never have realized that unrequited love\nis still an ecstatic dance of the heart.\n\nIf I hadn\'t encountered praise and blame,\nsuccess and failure, heat and cold, darkness and light,\nblows and kisses, pain and bliss,\nnever would I have found out that through it all\nthere is a Spirit within me\nwhich remains unceasingly alive and loving.\n\nIf I hadn\'t received the gift of knowing you,\nI would not have come to realise\nthat our stories are different in details,\nbut never in essence.\n\nIf I hadn\'t lived through an era of hurting\nI would never have met the miracle\nof being fed with kindness by a friend.\n\nIf I hadn\'t discovered that you and I\nare two threads in the same vast cloth,\nI would have remained forever lost and imprisoned\nin my separate universe.\n\nIf I hadn\'t seen both good and evil\noccupying space in the same event,\nI would never have met the hand of humour\npainting over these polarities\nwith new clarity and light.\n\nIf I hadn\'t wept a thousand tears\nover the loss of a beloved,\nI would never have been driven inward\nto find the eternal companion,\nmy Soul.\n\nIf I had not witnessed cruelty\nand man\'s inhumanity to man,\nI would not have been forced to look\nbeneath the ugliness of fear,\nand encounter the common Heart\nthat lies beneath it.\n\nIf I hadn\'t encountered our myriad differences,\nI would never have discovered that you and I\nare not two,\nbut infinite sparks of love ever arising\nfrom one indestructible Flame.\n\nAnd if I hadn\'t felt abandoned and heartsick,\nI would never have heard the wordless whisper\nof an abiding, unseeable Friend,\nwho translated the feeling of alone\ninto All One.','Pain a wonderful Teacher','','inherit','open','open','','843-revision-2','','','2011-10-20 11:35:38','2011-10-20 18:35:38','',843,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/20/843-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(846,24,'2011-10-20 11:47:01','2011-10-20 18:47:01','Pain invited my ear, \"Listen to me, for I have knowledge of Truth hidden in what you fear.\"\n\nFear roared, \"Do not look or listen to pain, it will only lead you to more discomfort!\"\n\nLove whispered, \"Go into this pain, it is safe. You will only discover more to love.\"\n\nShame whimpered, \"Remember everything that has happened to you, everyone despises you. This will not work.\"\n\nCourage invoked, \"All fear is an illusion, walk straight ahead!\"\n\nPride demanded, \"You have everything you need already, this is a waste of time.\"\n\nEver notice how throughout a day what you are  feeling will interpret reality for you. As you follow these feelings they usually lead you to thoughts. These thought are ideas about your self, others and how life is playing out. Few questions these thoughts, few face the idea\'s of being separate, alone and unwanted. We tend to settle for a hope of one day getting what we want so we can be happy.\n\nWhat would life be like if we embraced all of it? We stop avoiding pain and run into what we have been taught to fear.\n\nWhy do we stop going to the gym? Because we no longer engage with the benefits the pain brings us. This benefit is strength\n\nWHY BADSTUFF HAPPENS\n<em>by Elsa Joy Bailey</em>\n\nIf it weren\'t for my beautiful sad mother\ndrinking a beaker of cold cyanide when I was three,\nI wouldn\'t have learned\nshe could both love and abandon me\nin one hot severe breath.\nNor would I have grown flowers in my heart\nfor people who urgently want to die.\n\nIf I had not broken my leg in a wild fall,\nI wouldn\'t have learned that stark physical pain\nis, to my great surprise, not permanent.\n\nIf I hadn\'t fallen in love with someone\nwho didn\'t love me,\nI would never have realized that unrequited love\nis still an ecstatic dance of the heart.\n\nIf I hadn\'t encountered praise and blame,\nsuccess and failure, heat and cold, darkness and light,\nblows and kisses, pain and bliss,\nnever would I have found out that through it all\nthere is a Spirit within me\nwhich remains unceasingly alive and loving.\n\nIf I hadn\'t received the gift of knowing you,\nI would not have come to realise\nthat our stories are different in details,\nbut never in essence.\n\nIf I hadn\'t lived through an era of hurting\nI would never have met the miracle\nof being fed with kindness by a friend.\n\nIf I hadn\'t discovered that you and I\nare two threads in the same vast cloth,\nI would have remained forever lost and imprisoned\nin my separate universe.\n\nIf I hadn\'t seen both good and evil\noccupying space in the same event,\nI would never have met the hand of humour\npainting over these polarities\nwith new clarity and light.\n\nIf I hadn\'t wept a thousand tears\nover the loss of a beloved,\nI would never have been driven inward\nto find the eternal companion,\nmy Soul.\n\nIf I had not witnessed cruelty\nand man\'s inhumanity to man,\nI would not have been forced to look\nbeneath the ugliness of fear,\nand encounter the common Heart\nthat lies beneath it.\n\nIf I hadn\'t encountered our myriad differences,\nI would never have discovered that you and I\nare not two,\nbut infinite sparks of love ever arising\nfrom one indestructible Flame.\n\nAnd if I hadn\'t felt abandoned and heartsick,\nI would never have heard the wordless whisper\nof an abiding, unseeable Friend,\nwho translated the feeling of alone\ninto All One.','Pain a wonderful Teacher','','inherit','open','open','','843-revision-3','','','2011-10-20 11:47:01','2011-10-20 18:47:01','',843,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/20/843-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(847,24,'2011-10-20 11:48:09','2011-10-20 18:48:09','Pain invited my ear, \"Listen to me, for I have knowledge of Truth hidden in what you fear.\"\n\nFear roared, \"Do not look or listen to pain, it will only lead you to more discomfort!\"\n\nLove whispered, \"Go into this pain, it is safe. You will only discover more to love.\"\n\nShame whimpered, \"Remember everything that has happened to you, everyone despises you. This will not work.\"\n\nCourage invoked, \"All fear is an illusion, walk straight ahead!\"\n\nPride demanded, \"You have everything you need already, this is a waste of time.\"\n\nEver notice how throughout a day what you are  feeling will interpret reality for you. As you follow these feelings they usually lead you to thoughts. These thought are ideas about your self, others and how life is playing out. Few questions these thoughts, few face the idea\'s of being separate, alone and unwanted. We tend to settle for a hope of one day getting what we want so we can be happy.\n\nWhat would life be like if we embraced all of it? What would like be like if we stopped avoiding pain and ran into what we have been taught to fear.\n\nWhy do we stop going to the gym? Because we no longer engage with the benefits the pain brings us. This benefit is strength.\n\nWHY BADSTUFF HAPPENS\n<em>by Elsa Joy Bailey</em>\n\nIf it weren\'t for my beautiful sad mother\ndrinking a beaker of cold cyanide when I was three,\nI wouldn\'t have learned\nshe could both love and abandon me\nin one hot severe breath.\nNor would I have grown flowers in my heart\nfor people who urgently want to die.\n\nIf I had not broken my leg in a wild fall,\nI wouldn\'t have learned that stark physical pain\nis, to my great surprise, not permanent.\n\nIf I hadn\'t fallen in love with someone\nwho didn\'t love me,\nI would never have realized that unrequited love\nis still an ecstatic dance of the heart.\n\nIf I hadn\'t encountered praise and blame,\nsuccess and failure, heat and cold, darkness and light,\nblows and kisses, pain and bliss,\nnever would I have found out that through it all\nthere is a Spirit within me\nwhich remains unceasingly alive and loving.\n\nIf I hadn\'t received the gift of knowing you,\nI would not have come to realise\nthat our stories are different in details,\nbut never in essence.\n\nIf I hadn\'t lived through an era of hurting\nI would never have met the miracle\nof being fed with kindness by a friend.\n\nIf I hadn\'t discovered that you and I\nare two threads in the same vast cloth,\nI would have remained forever lost and imprisoned\nin my separate universe.\n\nIf I hadn\'t seen both good and evil\noccupying space in the same event,\nI would never have met the hand of humour\npainting over these polarities\nwith new clarity and light.\n\nIf I hadn\'t wept a thousand tears\nover the loss of a beloved,\nI would never have been driven inward\nto find the eternal companion,\nmy Soul.\n\nIf I had not witnessed cruelty\nand man\'s inhumanity to man,\nI would not have been forced to look\nbeneath the ugliness of fear,\nand encounter the common Heart\nthat lies beneath it.\n\nIf I hadn\'t encountered our myriad differences,\nI would never have discovered that you and I\nare not two,\nbut infinite sparks of love ever arising\nfrom one indestructible Flame.\n\nAnd if I hadn\'t felt abandoned and heartsick,\nI would never have heard the wordless whisper\nof an abiding, unseeable Friend,\nwho translated the feeling of alone\ninto All One.','Pain a wonderful Teacher','','inherit','open','open','','843-revision-4','','','2011-10-20 11:48:09','2011-10-20 18:48:09','',843,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/20/843-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(848,1,'2011-10-20 15:35:39','2011-10-20 22:35:39','Today, we\'ve witnessed the death of yet another enemy of the United States, and the world in General.  As I write this, the media outlets are exploding with the Grotesque pictures and videos of Moammar Gadhafi\'s death.  The celebrations are beginning.  The firsts are pumping.  The chanting is ringing out loud and clear.  \"USA!  USA!  USA!\"  Even within the American Church, rejoicing is evident.  I just received an email from a pastor friend of mine who made it clear that his revelry had begun.  \"Good riddance, huh?  Hope he \'s enjoying Hell!\"  Again, i sit here and meditate on what is transpiring and to be honest, I\'m deeply saddened and a bit ashamed.  Not ashamed at America; but ashamed at the Church.  I\'m not necessarily saddened that Gadhafi is dead, but how Christ followers are reacting in this \"Christian Nation\".  And it causes me to ask the question: Is America a Christian Nation?  And should it be considered such?\n\nI fully anticipate much anger directed toward me on at the words I’m writing.  But before the first stone is cast, let me begin by stating that within the world’s perspective, I feel that the death of Moammar Gaghafi is a good thing.  Like most Americans, I detest anything or anyone that stands in the way of the human right of freedom.  Gadhafi was a dictator and hindered the freedom that each and every Libyan deserves and is given to human beings by God.  With a heavy heart, I mourn the death of the innocent people who have died because of his action; deliberate or inadvertently.  I think about husbands, wives, mothers, fathers and children that have had their lives ripped apart because of the violence that has stemmed from his regime and ideologies.  I mourn the loss of the soldiers that have died over the years, fighting for freedom and to end terror and violence in this world.  I am proud of this country and thank God for the freedom I have each and every day; the same freedom I have to write this blog today.  I love this country, but loving my country does not relieve me of the responsibility I have in choosing where my allegiance lies and what Kingdom I choose to serve. As a follower of Christ, it’s imperative that I chose to view these events from a different perspective:  The Kingdom of God.  That’s the outlet that my emotions must rise from and the lens that I chose to view the events we witness today.\n\nSo, with that said, and knowing my perspective, it shouldn’t shock anyone to know that I am mourning the death of Moammar Gadhafi.  Like I said, I do believe that His death is a good thing and our world is safer from it, but I still mourn his death.  From beginning to end, this man’s life and America’s association with him has been nothing to rejoice.  The news we received today was simply the pinnacle of a long progression of war and death, and more than likely, not the end.  But war and death are not something to celebrate.  In the general scheme of things, the Kingdom of God has not been advanced one single inch by this man’s death.  To be honest, from an eternal perspective, what has transpired doesn\'t matter all that much.  War is not a sporting event and as much as we want to believe it, Jesus is not on our team.  He doesn’t rejoice at the death of Gadhafi and does not breathe a sigh of relief that America gained a few more points in the game.  We don’t win.\n\nWhat I do believe is that God is very much anticipating how each and every one of us is going to react today; not so much from an external perspective, but internal.  What do our hearts really feel at this moment?  What is the truth that will be taken from these events and what is God’s perspective on what has happened.  That’s the perspective that the Church needs to choose to view this from.  And a great deal of that perspective comes from Scripture.  But before I refer to the words of Christ, let me address one particular perspective that I’ve seen some folks using as a defense.\n\nMany people refer to some of the Old Testament examples of war, and how God seems to bless, approve and even rejoice in the victories of Israel.  It appears that by looking at these many references, God endorses war and rejoices in the victories of war.  I understand completely why some well intending Christians would use these examples as justification for America’s rejoicing today.  However, as with anything in Scripture, it’s vitally imperative that we look at this from a proper perspective.  The nation of Israel was God’s chosen people.  This was the people who He chose to build this world through.  These were the people who would begin the long progression of events that would bring Jesus Christ into this world and begin the eventual realization of the Kingdom of God coming to fruition.  These were <em>His </em>people, <em>His</em> nation, <em>His</em> mission and in essence, <em>His</em> wars.  In many ways, it was not the people of Israel fighting other nations, but God fighting <em>through</em> them to defend Himself, His honor, worship and glory.  When Israel celebrated the death and victory from war, in many ways it was God celebrating and the people glorified God more than they did the nation.  Israel celebrated in the Temple.  We celebrate at Starbucks.\n\nSo, flash forward several hundred years.  Things have changed.  Messiah has come.  Jesus has inaugurated the Kingdom of God and calls the people of Israel to start looking at things very differently.  In essence, Rome was terrorizing and oppressing God’s people and they wanted nothing more than for a political and military Messiah to rise up and smack Rome on its ass.  But instead, we start hearing things like, <em>“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’</em> <em>But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?  And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?  Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:43-48)  “But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.” (Matthew 5:39)  \"Put your sword back in its place,\" Jesus said to him, \"for all who draw the sword will die by the sword.” (Matthew 26:52)</em>\n\nThese are only three examples, but in the historical context of these references from the Gospel according to Matthew, Jesus is speaking to the Jews and more than likely referring to the Roman Empire.  I guarantee you that these words were not easy for Jesus’ followers to hear.  These teachings went against everything they felt, were taught and believed at that point, but Jesus was calling His followers, and all of us as well, to look at the world from a different perspective.  To open our view of “kingdom” and “nation” to more than just the borders that surround us.  To view brother and sister to include more than just those that we see each and every day.  In essence, Jesus was calling us to view the world from His perspective and not ours.  You won’t like hearing this, but God loved and created Moammar Gadhafi, longed for his salvation and knew the number of hairs on his head, just as he does for you and me.   And that leaves me with a sobering thought.  Would those that cheer his death, be the same one\'s cheering his salvation?  And how many of us actually prayed for his salvation over the years?\n\nThis does not diminish the death of the innocent that have lost their lives and does not take away from the fact that Gadhafi\'s death is somehow justified.  Like I said before, in reality, it is a good thing that he is gone and if you were to ask me if I am glad, in a deep dark place in my heart, I have to admit that I am.  My first reaction to the news was excitement and the urge to celebrate.  But after taking a few steps back, and asking myself the cliché\' question, \"What would Jesus do?\", for the life of me, and as hard as I try, I cannot imagine Him standing next to those celebrating and chanting, \"USA!  USA!  USA!\"','The Kingdom of God and the Death of Gadhafi','','inherit','open','open','','835-autosave','','','2011-10-20 15:35:39','2011-10-20 22:35:39','',835,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/20/835-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(849,1,'2011-10-20 15:38:47','2011-10-20 22:38:47','','Gaddafi_Dead','','inherit','open','open','','gaddafi_dead','','','2011-10-20 15:38:47','2011-10-20 22:38:47','',835,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Gaddafi_Dead.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(850,1,'2011-10-20 09:24:36','2011-10-20 16:24:36','Today, we\'ve witnessed the death of yet another enemy of the United States, and the world in General.  As I write this, the media outlets are exploding with the Grotesque pictures and videos of Moammar Gadhafi\'s death.  The celebrations are beginning.  The firsts are pumping.  The chanting is ringing out loud and clear.  \"USA!  USA!  USA!\"  Even within the American Church, rejoicing is evident.  I just received an email from a pastor friend of mine who made it clear that his revelry had begun.  \"Good riddance, huh?  Hope he \'s enjoying Hell!\"  Again, i sit here and meditate on what is transpiring and to be honest, I\'m deeply saddened and a bit ashamed.  Not ashamed at America; but ashamed at the Church.  I\'m not necessarily saddened that Gadhafi is dead, but how Christ followers are reacting in this \"Christian Nation\".  And it causes me to ask the question: Is America a Christian Nation?  And should it be considered such?\r\n\r\nI fully anticipate much anger directed toward me on at the words I’m writing.  But before the first stone is cast, let me begin by stating that within the world’s perspective, I feel that the death of Moammar Gaghafi is a good thing.  Like most Americans, I detest anything or anyone that stands in the way of the human right of freedom.  Gadhafi was a dictator and hindered the freedom that each and every Libyan deserves and is given to human beings by God.  With a heavy heart, I mourn the death of the innocent people who have died because of his action; deliberate or inadvertently.  I think about husbands, wives, mothers, fathers and children that have had their lives ripped apart because of the violence that has stemmed from his regime and ideologies.  I mourn the loss of the soldiers that have died over the years, fighting for freedom and to end terror and violence in this world.  I am proud of this country and thank God for the freedom I have each and every day; the same freedom I have to write this blog today.  I love this country, but loving my country does not relieve me of the responsibility I have in choosing where my allegiance lies and what Kingdom I choose to serve. As a follower of Christ, it’s imperative that I chose to view these events from a different perspective:  The Kingdom of God.  That’s the outlet that my emotions must rise from and the lens that I chose to view the events we witness today.\r\n\r\nSo, with that said, and knowing my perspective, it shouldn’t shock anyone to know that I am mourning the death of Moammar Gadhafi.  Like I said, I do believe that His death is a good thing and our world is safer from it, but I still mourn his death.  From beginning to end, this man’s life and America’s association with him has been nothing to rejoice.  The news we received today was simply the pinnacle of a long progression of war and death, and more than likely, not the end.  But war and death are not something to celebrate.  In the general scheme of things, the Kingdom of God has not been advanced one single inch by this man’s death.  To be honest, from an eternal perspective, what has transpired doesn\'t matter all that much.  War is not a sporting event and as much as we want to believe it, Jesus is not on our team.  He doesn’t rejoice at the death of Gadhafi and does not breathe a sigh of relief that America gained a few more points in the game.  We don’t win.\r\n\r\nWhat I do believe is that God is very much anticipating how each and every one of us is going to react today; not so much from an external perspective, but internal.  What do our hearts really feel at this moment?  What is the truth that will be taken from these events and what is God’s perspective on what has happened.  That’s the perspective that the Church needs to choose to view this from.  And a great deal of that perspective comes from Scripture.  But before I refer to the words of Christ, let me address one particular perspective that I’ve seen some folks using as a defense.\r\n\r\nMany people refer to some of the Old Testament examples of war, and how God seems to bless, approve and even rejoice in the victories of Israel.  It appears that by looking at these many references, God endorses war and rejoices in the victories of war.  I understand completely why some well intending Christians would use these examples as justification for America’s rejoicing today.  However, as with anything in Scripture, it’s vitally imperative that we look at this from a proper perspective.  The nation of Israel was God’s chosen people.  This was the people who He chose to build this world through.  These were the people who would begin the long progression of events that would bring Jesus Christ into this world and begin the eventual realization of the Kingdom of God coming to fruition.  These were <em>His </em>people, <em>His</em> nation, <em>His</em> mission and in essence, <em>His</em> wars.  In many ways, it was not the people of Israel fighting other nations, but God fighting <em>through</em> them to defend Himself, His honor, worship and glory.  When Israel celebrated the death and victory from war, in many ways it was God celebrating and the people glorified God more than they did the nation.  Israel celebrated in the Temple.  We celebrate at Starbucks.\r\n\r\nSo, flash forward several hundred years.  Things have changed.  Messiah has come.  Jesus has inaugurated the Kingdom of God and calls the people of Israel to start looking at things very differently.  In essence, Rome was terrorizing and oppressing God’s people and they wanted nothing more than for a political and military Messiah to rise up and smack Rome on its ass.  But instead, we start hearing things like, <em>“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’</em> <em>But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?  And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?  Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:43-48)  “But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.” (Matthew 5:39)  \"Put your sword back in its place,\" Jesus said to him, \"for all who draw the sword will die by the sword.” (Matthew 26:52)</em>\r\n\r\nThese are only three examples, but in the historical context of these references from the Gospel according to Matthew, Jesus is speaking to the Jews and more than likely referring to the Roman Empire.  I guarantee you that these words were not easy for Jesus’ followers to hear.  These teachings went against everything they felt, were taught and believed at that point, but Jesus was calling His followers, and all of us as well, to look at the world from a different perspective.  To open our view of “kingdom” and “nation” to more than just the borders that surround us.  To view brother and sister to include more than just those that we see each and every day.  In essence, Jesus was calling us to view the world from His perspective and not ours.  You won’t like hearing this, but God loved and created Moammar Gadhafi, longed for his salvation and knew the number of hairs on his head, just as he does for you and me.   And that leaves me with a sobering thought.  Would those that cheer his death, be the same one\'s cheering his salvation?  And how many of us actually prayed for his salvation over the years?\r\n\r\nThis does not diminish the death of the innocent that have lost their lives and does not take away from the fact that Gadhafi\'s death is somehow justified.  Like I said before, in reality, it is a good thing that he is gone and if you were to ask me if I am glad, in a deep dark place in my heart, I have to admit that I am.  My first reaction to the news was excitement and the urge to celebrate.  But after taking a few steps back, and asking myself the cliché\' question, \"What would Jesus do?\", for the life of me, and as hard as I try, I cannot imagine Him standing next to those celebrating and chanting, \"USA!  USA!  USA!\"\r\n<h3></h3>','The Kingdom of God and the Death of Gadhafi','','inherit','open','open','','835-revision-6','','','2011-10-20 09:24:36','2011-10-20 16:24:36','',835,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/20/835-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(851,1,'2011-10-20 15:39:37','2011-10-20 22:39:37','Today, we\'ve witnessed the death of yet another enemy of the United States, and the world in General.  As I write this, the media outlets are exploding with the Grotesque pictures and videos of Moammar Gadhafi\'s death.  The celebrations are beginning.  The firsts are pumping.  The chanting is ringing out loud and clear.  \"USA!  USA!  USA!\"  Even within the American Church, rejoicing is evident.  I just received an email from a pastor friend of mine who made it clear that his revelry had begun.  \"Good riddance, huh?  Hope he \'s enjoying Hell!\"  Again, i sit here and meditate on what is transpiring and to be honest, I\'m deeply saddened and a bit ashamed.  Not ashamed at America; but ashamed at the Church.  I\'m not necessarily saddened that Gadhafi is dead, but how Christ followers are reacting in this \"Christian Nation\".  And it causes me to ask the question: Is America a Christian Nation?  And should it be considered such?\r\n\r\nI fully anticipate much anger directed toward me on at the words I’m writing.  But before the first stone is cast, let me begin by stating that within the world’s perspective, I feel that the death of Moammar Gaghafi is a good thing.  Like most Americans, I detest anything or anyone that stands in the way of the human right of freedom.  Gadhafi was a dictator and hindered the freedom that each and every Libyan deserves and is given to human beings by God.  With a heavy heart, I mourn the death of the innocent people who have died because of his action; deliberate or inadvertently.  I think about husbands, wives, mothers, fathers and children that have had their lives ripped apart because of the violence that has stemmed from his regime and ideologies.  I mourn the loss of the soldiers that have died over the years, fighting for freedom and to end terror and violence in this world.  I am proud of this country and thank God for the freedom I have each and every day; the same freedom I have to write this blog today.  I love this country, but loving my country does not relieve me of the responsibility I have in choosing where my allegiance lies and what Kingdom I choose to serve. As a follower of Christ, it’s imperative that I chose to view these events from a different perspective:  The Kingdom of God.  That’s the outlet that my emotions must rise from and the lens that I chose to view the events we witness today.\r\n\r\nSo, with that said, and knowing my perspective, it shouldn’t shock anyone to know that I am mourning the death of Moammar Gadhafi.  Like I said, I do believe that His death is a good thing and our world is safer from it, but I still mourn his death.  From beginning to end, this man’s life and America’s association with him has been nothing to rejoice.  The news we received today was simply the pinnacle of a long progression of war and death, and more than likely, not the end.  But war and death are not something to celebrate.  In the general scheme of things, the Kingdom of God has not been advanced one single inch by this man’s death.  To be honest, from an eternal perspective, what has transpired doesn\'t matter all that much.  War is not a sporting event and as much as we want to believe it, Jesus is not on our team.  He doesn’t rejoice at the death of Gadhafi and does not breathe a sigh of relief that America gained a few more points in the game.  We don’t win.\r\n\r\nWhat I do believe is that God is very much anticipating how each and every one of us is going to react today; not so much from an external perspective, but internal.  What do our hearts really feel at this moment?  What is the truth that will be taken from these events and what is God’s perspective on what has happened.  That’s the perspective that the Church needs to choose to view this from.  And a great deal of that perspective comes from Scripture.  But before I refer to the words of Christ, let me address one particular perspective that I’ve seen some folks using as a defense.\r\n\r\nMany people refer to some of the Old Testament examples of war, and how God seems to bless, approve and even rejoice in the victories of Israel.  It appears that by looking at these many references, God endorses war and rejoices in the victories of war.  I understand completely why some well intending Christians would use these examples as justification for America’s rejoicing today.  However, as with anything in Scripture, it’s vitally imperative that we look at this from a proper perspective.  The nation of Israel was God’s chosen people.  This was the people who He chose to build this world through.  These were the people who would begin the long progression of events that would bring Jesus Christ into this world and begin the eventual realization of the Kingdom of God coming to fruition.  These were <em>His </em>people, <em>His</em> nation, <em>His</em> mission and in essence, <em>His</em> wars.  In many ways, it was not the people of Israel fighting other nations, but God fighting <em>through</em> them to defend Himself, His honor, worship and glory.  When Israel celebrated the death and victory from war, in many ways it was God celebrating and the people glorified God more than they did the nation.  Israel celebrated in the Temple.  We celebrate at Starbucks.\r\n\r\nSo, flash forward several hundred years.  Things have changed.  Messiah has come.  Jesus has inaugurated the Kingdom of God and calls the people of Israel to start looking at things very differently.  In essence, Rome was terrorizing and oppressing God’s people and they wanted nothing more than for a political and military Messiah to rise up and smack Rome on its ass.  But instead, we start hearing things like, <em>“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’</em> <em>But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?  And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?  Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:43-48)  “But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.” (Matthew 5:39)  \"Put your sword back in its place,\" Jesus said to him, \"for all who draw the sword will die by the sword.” (Matthew 26:52)</em>\r\n\r\nThese are only three examples, but in the historical context of these references from the Gospel according to Matthew, Jesus is speaking to the Jews and more than likely referring to the Roman Empire.  I guarantee you that these words were not easy for Jesus’ followers to hear.  These teachings went against everything they felt, were taught and believed at that point, but Jesus was calling His followers, and all of us as well, to look at the world from a different perspective.  To open our view of “kingdom” and “nation” to more than just the borders that surround us.  To view brother and sister to include more than just those that we see each and every day.  In essence, Jesus was calling us to view the world from His perspective and not ours.  You won’t like hearing this, but God loved and created Moammar Gadhafi, longed for his salvation and knew the number of hairs on his head, just as he does for you and me.   And that leaves me with a sobering thought.  Would those that cheer his death, be the same one\'s cheering his salvation?  And how many of us actually prayed for his salvation over the years?\r\n\r\nThis does not diminish the death of the innocent that have lost their lives and does not take away from the fact that Gadhafi\'s death is somehow justified.  Like I said before, in reality, it is a good thing that he is gone and if you were to ask me if I am glad, in a deep dark place in my heart, I have to admit that I am.  My first reaction to the news was excitement and the urge to celebrate.  But after taking a few steps back, and asking myself the cliché\' question, \"What would Jesus do?\", for the life of me, and as hard as I try, I cannot imagine Him standing next to those celebrating and chanting, \"USA!  USA!  USA!\"','The Kingdom of God and the Death of Gadhafi','','inherit','open','open','','835-revision-7','','','2011-10-20 15:39:37','2011-10-20 22:39:37','',835,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/20/835-revision-7/',0,'revision','',0),(852,1,'2011-10-20 15:39:56','2011-10-20 22:39:56','Today, we\'ve witnessed the death of yet another enemy of the United States, and the world in General.  As I write this, the media outlets are exploding with the Grotesque pictures and videos of Moammar Gadhafi\'s death.  The celebrations are beginning.  The firsts are pumping.  The chanting is ringing out loud and clear.  \"USA!  USA!  USA!\"  Even within the American Church, rejoicing is evident.  I just received an email from a pastor friend of mine who made it clear that his revelry had begun.  \"Good riddance, huh?  Hope he \'s enjoying Hell!\"  Again, i sit here and meditate on what is transpiring and to be honest, I\'m deeply saddened and a bit ashamed.  Not ashamed at America; but ashamed at the Church.  I\'m not necessarily saddened that Gadhafi is dead, but how Christ followers are reacting in this \"Christian Nation\".  And it causes me to ask the question: Is America a Christian Nation?  And should it be considered such?\r\n\r\nI fully anticipate much anger directed toward me on at the words I’m writing.  But before the first stone is cast, let me begin by stating that within the world’s perspective, I feel that the death of Moammar Gaghafi is a good thing.  Like most Americans, I detest anything or anyone that stands in the way of the human right of freedom.  Gadhafi was a dictator and hindered the freedom that each and every Libyan deserves and is given to human beings by God.  With a heavy heart, I mourn the death of the innocent people who have died because of his action; deliberate or inadvertently.  I think about husbands, wives, mothers, fathers and children that have had their lives ripped apart because of the violence that has stemmed from his regime and ideologies.  I mourn the loss of the soldiers that have died over the years, fighting for freedom and to end terror and violence in this world.  I am proud of this country and thank God for the freedom I have each and every day; the same freedom I have to write this blog today.  I love this country, but loving my country does not relieve me of the responsibility I have in choosing where my allegiance lies and what Kingdom I choose to serve. As a follower of Christ, it’s imperative that I chose to view these events from a different perspective:  The Kingdom of God.  That’s the outlet that my emotions must rise from and the lens that I chose to view the events we witness today.\r\n\r\nSo, with that said, and knowing my perspective, it shouldn’t shock anyone to know that I am mourning the death of Moammar Gadhafi.  Like I said, I do believe that His death is a good thing and our world is safer from it, but I still mourn his death.  From beginning to end, this man’s life and America’s association with him has been nothing to rejoice.  The news we received today was simply the pinnacle of a long progression of war and death, and more than likely, not the end.  But war and death are not something to celebrate.  In the general scheme of things, the Kingdom of God has not been advanced one single inch by this man’s death.  To be honest, from an eternal perspective, what has transpired doesn\'t matter all that much.  War is not a sporting event and as much as we want to believe it, Jesus is not on our team.  He doesn’t rejoice at the death of Gadhafi and does not breathe a sigh of relief that America gained a few more points in the game.  We don’t win.\r\n\r\nWhat I do believe is that God is very much anticipating how each and every one of us is going to react today; not so much from an external perspective, but internal.  What do our hearts really feel at this moment?  What is the truth that will be taken from these events and what is God’s perspective on what has happened.  That’s the perspective that the Church needs to choose to view this from.  And a great deal of that perspective comes from Scripture.  But before I refer to the words of Christ, let me address one particular perspective that I’ve seen some folks using as a defense.\r\n\r\nMany people refer to some of the Old Testament examples of war, and how God seems to bless, approve and even rejoice in the victories of Israel.  It appears that by looking at these many references, God endorses war and rejoices in the victories of war.  I understand completely why some well intending Christians would use these examples as justification for America’s rejoicing today.  However, as with anything in Scripture, it’s vitally imperative that we look at this from a proper perspective.  The nation of Israel was God’s chosen people.  This was the people who He chose to build this world through.  These were the people who would begin the long progression of events that would bring Jesus Christ into this world and begin the eventual realization of the Kingdom of God coming to fruition.  These were <em>His </em>people, <em>His</em> nation, <em>His</em> mission and in essence, <em>His</em> wars.  In many ways, it was not the people of Israel fighting other nations, but God fighting <em>through</em> them to defend Himself, His honor, worship and glory.  When Israel celebrated the death and victory from war, in many ways it was God celebrating and the people glorified God more than they did the nation.  Israel celebrated in the Temple.  We celebrate at Starbucks.\r\n\r\nSo, flash forward several hundred years.  Things have changed.  Messiah has come.  Jesus has inaugurated the Kingdom of God and calls the people of Israel to start looking at things very differently.  In essence, Rome was terrorizing and oppressing God’s people and they wanted nothing more than for a political and military Messiah to rise up and smack Rome on its ass.  But instead, we start hearing things like, <em>“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’</em> <em>But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?  And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?  Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:43-48)  “But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.” (Matthew 5:39)  \"Put your sword back in its place,\" Jesus said to him, \"for all who draw the sword will die by the sword.” (Matthew 26:52)</em>\r\n\r\nThese are only three examples, but in the historical context of these references from the Gospel according to Matthew, Jesus is speaking to the Jews and more than likely referring to the Roman Empire.  I guarantee you that these words were not easy for Jesus’ followers to hear.  These teachings went against everything they felt, were taught and believed at that point, but Jesus was calling His followers, and all of us as well, to look at the world from a different perspective.  To open our view of “kingdom” and “nation” to more than just the borders that surround us.  To view brother and sister to include more than just those that we see each and every day.  In essence, Jesus was calling us to view the world from His perspective and not ours.  You won’t like hearing this, but God loved and created Moammar Gadhafi, longed for his salvation and knew the number of hairs on his head, just as he does for you and me.   And that leaves me with a sobering thought.  Would those that cheer his death, be the same one\'s cheering his salvation?  And how many of us actually prayed for his salvation over the years?\r\n\r\nThis does not diminish the death of the innocent that have lost their lives and does not take away from the fact that Gadhafi\'s death is somehow justified.  Like I said before, in reality, it is a good thing that he is gone and if you were to ask me if I am glad, in a deep dark place in my heart, I have to admit that I am.  My first reaction to the news was excitement and the urge to celebrate.  But after taking a few steps back, and asking myself the cliché\' question, \"What would Jesus do?\", for the life of me, and as hard as I try, I cannot imagine Him standing next to those celebrating and chanting, \"USA!  USA!  USA!\"','The Kingdom of God and the Death of Gadhafi','','inherit','open','open','','835-revision-8','','','2011-10-20 15:39:56','2011-10-20 22:39:56','',835,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/20/835-revision-8/',0,'revision','',0),(853,0,'2011-10-20 18:39:05','2011-10-21 01:39:05','I was expecting the RSS feed to push to my Google Reader, but I got the XML page instead.\r\n\r\nYou may want to adjust the settings on your feed.  My wife Amy writes for you, so I\'m taking the extra time necessary to subscribe.  Other first-time visitors may not be as patient.\r\n\r\nGood luck with this new online magazine!\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Andy Mitchell\nAUTHOR EMAIL: gadfly1974@yahoo.com\nAUTHOR URL: \nSUBJECT: [Provoketive Magazine] Contact Us\nIP: 74.69.23.179\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Andy Mitchell\n    [Email] =&gt; gadfly1974@yahoo.com\n    [Comment] =&gt; I was expecting the RSS feed to push to my Google Reader, but I got the XML page instead.\r\n\r\nYou may want to adjust the settings on your feed.  My wife Amy writes for you, so I\'m taking the extra time necessary to subscribe.  Other first-time visitors may not be as patient.\r\n\r\nGood luck with this new online magazine!\n)\n','Andy Mitchell - 2011-10-20 18:39:05','','publish','open','open','','7c608b933babddeb33f381b20b1fec6e','','','2011-10-20 18:39:05','2011-10-21 01:39:05','',16,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=853',0,'feedback','',0),(854,0,'2011-10-20 19:34:30','2011-10-21 02:34:30','http://provoketive.com/2011/10/14/the-alabaster-jar-a-parable/\r\n\r\nThe video link is broken, and it seems important to the article.\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Andy Mitchell\nAUTHOR EMAIL: gadfly1974@yahoo.com\nAUTHOR URL: \nSUBJECT: [Provoketive Magazine] Contact Us\nIP: 74.69.23.179\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Andy Mitchell\n    [Email] =&gt; gadfly1974@yahoo.com\n    [Comment] =&gt; http://provoketive.com/2011/10/14/the-alabaster-jar-a-parable/\r\n\r\nThe video link is broken, and it seems important to the article.\n)\n','Andy Mitchell - 2011-10-20 19:34:30','','publish','open','open','','c839ec4e17ea558d2a0b1a94ee03d8e2','','','2011-10-20 19:34:30','2011-10-21 02:34:30','',16,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=854',0,'feedback','',0),(855,1,'2011-10-20 19:42:00','2011-10-21 02:42:00','','Jake Kampe','','publish','open','open','','jake-kampe','','','2012-12-18 12:55:06','2012-12-18 20:55:06','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=855',34,'nav_menu_item','',0),(856,1,'2011-10-20 19:42:00','2011-10-21 02:42:00','','Sonny Lemmons','','publish','open','open','','sonny-lemmons','','','2012-12-18 12:55:06','2012-12-18 20:55:06','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=856',37,'nav_menu_item','',0),(858,1,'2011-10-20 20:20:49','2011-10-21 03:20:49','','duff_mckagan','','inherit','open','open','','duff_mckagan','','','2011-10-20 20:20:49','2011-10-21 03:20:49','',857,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/duff_mckagan.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(859,1,'2011-10-20 20:16:43','2011-10-21 03:16:43','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/Jzs2SlRIvHk\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"284\"></iframe>\n\nGuns and Roses is arguably one of the best bands of the 90\'s music scene.  I remember the first time I heard <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appetite_for_destruction\" target=\"_blank\">Appetite for Destruction</a>.  My world was changed much the way I image people felt when the Beatles released the White Album.\n\nDuff McKagan, the original bassist for the band has a new book out called <a href=\"http://www.duff-itssoeasy.com/\" target=\"_blank\">It\'s So Easy, And Other Lies</a>. Rock Star biographies are a dime a dozen, but this looks good.\n\nFrom his site:\n<blockquote><strong>“It certainly wasn’t a given that my story would amount to anything more than a lurid cautionary tale. It had all the elements: sex, drugs, and rock and roll, and fame, fortune and a fall. But instead, the story became —well, it became something else.” —DUFF McKAGAN</strong>\n\nA founding member of Guns N’ Roses and Velvet Revolver shares the story of his rise to the pinnacle of fame and fortune, his struggles with alcoholism and drug addiction, his personal crash and burn, and his phoenix-like transformation via a unique path to sobriety.\n\nIn 1984, at the age of twenty, Duff McKagan left his native Seattle—partly to pursue music but mainly to get away from a host of heroin overdoses then decimating his closest group of friends in the local punk scene.  In L.A. only a few weeks and still living in his car, he answered a want ad for a bass player placed by someone who identified himself only as “Slash.” Soon after, the most dangerous band in the world was born. Guns N’ Roses went on to sell more than 100 million albums worldwide.\n\n[<a href=\"http://www.duff-itssoeasy.com/\" target=\"_blank\">more</a>]</blockquote>\nThe book came out October 4th and is available everywhere.','Duff McKagan On Addiction','','inherit','open','open','','857-revision','','','2011-10-20 20:16:43','2011-10-21 03:16:43','',857,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/20/857-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(860,1,'2011-10-20 20:21:54','2011-10-21 03:21:54','<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/Jzs2SlRIvHk\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"500\" height=\"284\"></iframe>\r\n\r\nGuns and Roses is arguably one of the best bands of the 90\'s music scene.  I remember the first time I heard <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appetite_for_destruction\" target=\"_blank\">Appetite for Destruction</a>.  My world was changed much the way I image people felt when the Beatles released the White Album.\r\n\r\nDuff McKagan, the original bassist for the band has a new book out called <a href=\"http://www.duff-itssoeasy.com/\" target=\"_blank\">It\'s So Easy, And Other Lies</a>. Rock Star biographies are a dime a dozen, but this looks good.\r\n\r\nFrom his site:\r\n<blockquote><strong>“It certainly wasn’t a given that my story would amount to anything more than a lurid cautionary tale. It had all the elements: sex, drugs, and rock and roll, and fame, fortune and a fall. But instead, the story became —well, it became something else.” —DUFF McKAGAN</strong>\r\n\r\nA founding member of Guns N’ Roses and Velvet Revolver shares the story of his rise to the pinnacle of fame and fortune, his struggles with alcoholism and drug addiction, his personal crash and burn, and his phoenix-like transformation via a unique path to sobriety.\r\n\r\nIn 1984, at the age of twenty, Duff McKagan left his native Seattle—partly to pursue music but mainly to get away from a host of heroin overdoses then decimating his closest group of friends in the local punk scene.  In L.A. only a few weeks and still living in his car, he answered a want ad for a bass player placed by someone who identified himself only as “Slash.” Soon after, the most dangerous band in the world was born. Guns N’ Roses went on to sell more than 100 million albums worldwide.\r\n\r\n[<a href=\"http://www.duff-itssoeasy.com/\" target=\"_blank\">more</a>]</blockquote>\r\nThe book came out October 4th and is available everywhere.','Duff McKagan On Addiction','','inherit','open','open','','857-revision-2','','','2011-10-20 20:21:54','2011-10-21 03:21:54','',857,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/20/857-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(861,0,'2011-10-20 20:34:35','2011-10-21 03:34:35','Poetry, Interfaith Dialogue, Theology, and Spirituality\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: W. Brett Marko\nAUTHOR EMAIL: brett@leftofselfcenter.com\nAUTHOR URL: http://www.leftofselfcenter.com\nSUBJECT: Provoketive Magazine Writing For Proketive\nIP: 69.155.129.250\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; W. Brett Marko\n    [Email] =&gt; brett@leftofselfcenter.com\n    [Existing Blog or Website] =&gt; www.leftofselfcenter.com\n    [List the topic you are interested writing about] =&gt; Poetry, Interfaith Dialogue, Theology, and Spirituality\n    [Current or New WordPress Login Name (We\'ll send you a password.)] =&gt; brettmarko\n)\n','W. Brett Marko - 2011-10-20 20:34:35','','publish','open','open','','945d6964702d794144f1a4a1a077aeac','','','2011-10-20 20:34:35','2011-10-21 03:34:35','',358,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=861',0,'feedback','',0),(862,1,'2011-10-18 15:37:10','2011-10-18 22:37:10','Periodically we send out a newsletter with some of the best conversations. Use the form below to subscribe.\r\n\r\n<form action=\"http://www.graphicmail.com/RWCode/subscribe.asp?SiteID=60603&amp;SID=0\" method=\"post\" name=\"inputForm\"><input type=\"hidden\" name=\"SID\" value=\"0\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"ReturnURL\" value=\"\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"Resize\" value=\"1\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"Mode\" value=\"update\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"ResultMode\" value=\"\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"HitID\" value=\"0\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"OldEmail\" value=\"\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"EmailChange\" value=\"0\" /> <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"EmailID\" value=\"0\" />\r\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" align=\"center\">\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>\r\n<div>\r\n<div><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\">\r\n</span></div>\r\n</div>\r\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\">\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td colspan=\"2\" align=\"left\">\r\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"2\" cellpadding=\"0\">\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td align=\"right\" nowrap=\"nowrap\" width=\"10%\"><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\"><strong>Email   </strong></span></td>\r\n<td><input type=\"text\" name=\"Email\" value=\"\" size=\"40\" /></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td align=\"right\" nowrap=\"nowrap\"><strong><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\">First name    </span></strong></td>\r\n<td><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\">\r\n<input type=\"text\" name=\"Col1\" value=\"\" size=\"40\" /></span></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td align=\"right\" nowrap=\"nowrap\"><strong><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\">Last name    </span></strong></td>\r\n<td><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\">\r\n<input type=\"text\" name=\"Col2\" value=\"\" size=\"40\" /></span></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td colspan=\"2\" align=\"center\" nowrap=\"nowrap\"><input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" /></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n</tbody>\r\n</table>\r\n</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n</tbody>\r\n</table>\r\n<div><center>Please come back at any time to modify your profile.</center><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\"><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10px; color: #000000; font-weight: Normal;\">\r\n</span></span>\r\n<table cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" align=\"center\">\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n</tbody>\r\n</table>\r\n</div></td>\r\n</tr>\r\n</tbody>\r\n</table>\r\n</form>','Newsletter','','inherit','open','open','','33-revision-6','','','2011-10-18 15:37:10','2011-10-18 22:37:10','',33,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/18/33-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(2674,1,'2011-11-28 12:11:54','2011-11-28 20:11:54','You know what a grandma smells like, right? I don\'t even have to go into the details, you already know what I\'m talking about. If a grandma walked into the room where you are sitting right now, you would smell her before you saw her. Personally I don\'t think it\'s an altogether pleasant smell, but I tolerate it because the people that smell that way are ancient. It\'s very likely that they don\'t know any better than to soak in a tub of ivory soap for a few hours and then rub rose scented potpourri all over themselves.\n\nAny way the point here is that some smells are absolutely defining. You know what grandma smells like. For some people that smell stirs up some very stuffy and unpleasant memories. For some people all you can think about is wanting to hug your own grandma just one more time. When you smell freshly mown grass you may think of hours of back breaking labor, I think of sitting on the porch in summertime with a good book. When you smell coffee you might think of being a kid, waking up in the morning before dad went to work, I think of hours of back breaking labor.\n\nSo when scripture says that we are the aroma of God, well that will just make you stop for a moment. 2 Corinthians 2:15. It says that any one who dares spread the gospel, smells like God. So essentially, when you walk into a room, people smell God. What does God smell like? He smells like Death, He smells like Life. To people on the path to salvation, you smell like fresh air, like thanksgiving dinner, like a first love. To people on the path to destruction, you smell like rotten food, like that perfume store at the mall, like sulfur.\n\nObviously, it\'s not something you can actually smell, imagine being able to sniff out other believers. Or being able to smell if people were ready to hear the gospel. But just the same way you can\'t see a smell, you can\'t always explain why a person gives you the creeps, or inspires you just by being there. The spirit of God that is alive in us, is something that people are aware of, even if only subconsciously.\n\nYour sense of smell is the weakest sense you have. Eventually those sensors get used to what is in the air and you stop smelling it. Suppose you are in a room that has been exposed to a powerful airborne hallucinogen. You may smell it at first and take steps to get out of there. But after a while, you stop smelling it and you are far too fascinated by the pretty shapes on the walls to want to leave any more.\n\nSo if someone doesn\'t want you around, if they persecute you, if they spread lies about you, they smell God, they smell their own impending doom. Give it some time. Eventually they will realize that you are no danger, and soon may even begin to smell life on you rather than death.','Smells Like God','','inherit','open','open','','2497-autosave','','','2011-11-28 12:11:54','2011-11-28 20:11:54','',2497,'http://provoketive.com/2011/11/28/2497-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(864,1,'2011-10-19 18:53:56','2011-10-20 01:53:56','<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/bm.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-814\" style=\"margin-left: 6px;margin-right: 6px\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/bm-300x165.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"165\" /></a>I remember when I was 8, there was an uproar about why our new youth leader was allowing boys and girls to swim together in the same swimming pool in the overnight lock-in. Shocking!\r\n\r\nBelieve it or not, it’s still a huge issue today for some people. That’s fine. I say let everyone be with their small arguments about the Bible as long as it doesn’t keep me from using the public pool.\r\n\r\nScoot the calendar forward to modern day and there has been a debate for the past several years over viewing movies in church such as “Avatar” (which has profanity!) or “Transformers” (violence AND profanity!) and discussing the movies with teenagers. During the discussions, redeeming topics from Scripture are brought out.\r\n\r\nOne side of the topic says, “You should never allow this type of thing in the church.” The other says, “Let’s watch it together, find the good topics in it and watch it with them.”\r\n\r\nI remember listening to Dr. Albert Mohler, president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary one day on his radio show. A caller was a bit offended that his church was doing this. I think he expected some sympathy, but Dr. Mohler’s response was pretty straight forward – it’s a great idea. We need to be watching these movies with our kids and supervising them.\r\n\r\nThat leads me to my little world and my sweet daughters. I say “sweet” until you see them play the Xbox 360 while they play the new Batman: Arkham City and beat the ever loving crud out of some bad guys. You should see them. They sneak up stealthily behind a bad guy brandishing a gun, take him down and knock him unconscious.\r\n\r\n“Did you see that?” they’ll say. “That was awesome!”\r\n\r\nIn the Batman series of games which started with Batman: Arkham Asylum, there is violence and profanity and the series is rated for teens. And I let my girls play.\r\n\r\nBatman is a comic book character who is the alter ego of millionaire Bruce Wayne. His parents were killed in front of him by a criminal when he was a little boy and he has spent his life fighting crime as a vigilante. In both games, he uses a variety of weapons and tools to take down bad guys by non-lethal methods. He uses his detective skills to solve puzzles, meets interesting super villains and makes daring rescues. It’s a lot of fun.\r\n\r\nThere was a moment a couple of years ago when I had to make a conscious decision to allow my girls to play. It wasn’t as careless as me saying, “Yeah, I guess you’re tired of playing Barbie Horse Adventures. Go ahead and pop in Arkham Asylum.”\r\n\r\nI had already played the game and the girls knew how much I loved Batman. I told them they could play but only when I was in the room with them. For a while, they watched me play and they begged me to play themselves. They were hooked.\r\n\r\nSomething interesting happened while they were playing. The first was when my wife Allison walked into the room and said, “He sure kills a lot of people.”\r\n\r\nKatie said, “Batman never kills people. That would be murder.”\r\n\r\nOther times, someone in the game will utter a profanity. Both girls will roll their eyes and look at me or each other. They’ll say, “They shouldn’t say that.” It’s like they’re registering disappointment with the game developers for putting profanity in a game rated “T”.\r\n\r\nThen, my greatest theological “dad” moment. One of them asked, “I know his parents were killed, but why does he seek out justice?”\r\n\r\nI said, “There is a lot of injustice in the world. People throughout history have experienced injustice and have fought against it. They didn’t always wear capes, but they did what they thought was right.”\r\n\r\nEyes fixed firmly on Batman as he soared across the sky, one asked, “Like who?”\r\n\r\nI considered it for a moment. “Martin Luther, a long time ago, saw some injustice in the church he was part of.”\r\n\r\n“Did he fight?” one of them asked as Batman took out yet another villan with a haymaker.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/ml.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-817\" style=\"margin-left: 6px;margin-right: 6px\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/ml-211x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"164\" height=\"234\" /></a>“He did, but not with his fists. He took up the power of the pen and began to write. He shared his thoughts with the people and was able to make great changes,” I said.\r\n\r\n“What happened to him?” they asked as Batman went into detective mode.\r\n\r\n“Well, he made a lot of people angry and his life was in danger for a long time. But over time, he ended up helping make the changes that started a new movement in Christianity. In fact, if it weren’t for Martin Luther, we wouldn’t have the church we go to now.”\r\n\r\nThey paused the game. “So, he really was a hero, just without the cape and utility belt.”\r\n\r\n“Yeah, he was, girls. I don’t think there’s going to be a Martin Luther video game anytime soon.”\r\n\r\nWe don’t have to isolate ourselves from the culture in order to instruct them. In fact, knowing my children have strong consciences bound to Scripture before they engage the culture gives me peace when I know one day they will enter into it without me. Being part of the culture with them brings me not only a chance to instruct, but a chance to enjoy certain aspects of it with them. Not only that, but we can share common interests and hobbies.\r\n\r\nThat, and now my girls know how much Batman and Martin Luther rock.','Video Games, Batman, and Martin Luther','','inherit','open','open','','813-revision-3','','','2011-10-19 18:53:56','2011-10-20 01:53:56','',813,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/19/813-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(1365,1,'2011-10-28 13:27:52','2011-10-28 20:27:52','','monarch_changes','','inherit','open','open','','monarch_changes','','','2011-10-28 13:27:52','2011-10-28 20:27:52','',1364,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/monarch_changes.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(868,4,'2011-10-21 10:27:57','2011-10-21 17:27:57','Now the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread were just two days away, and the Pharisees — the chief priests and teachers of the law were trying to figure out how to arrest Jesus and kill him.  They decided to wait until after the celebrations for fear that others would riot against the established church.\r\n\r\nSo they sent spies to watch the heretic in action in order to gather some hard evidence to justify the death penalty.  Flash forward a few days to Bethany.  Jesus is reclining in the main living area of a house owned by a man named Simon who happens to be a leper.  His disciples are with him and so are the spies.\r\n\r\nSuddenly a beautiful and distraught woman came into the room holding an alabaster jar in her arms.  As her eyes wildly searched each face, Jesus realized who she was.  <strong>The jar contained perfume made of pure nard and cost the woman a year’s wages.</strong>\r\n\r\nLocking eyes onto him she smiled, bent down low and broke the jar, and began to move towards Jesus so that she might anoint him with the contents.  However, knowing her intentions, Jesus quickly moved to the side avoiding the woman with her expensive perfume as he motioned to his disciple Peter with a single glance.\r\n\r\nThe perfume spilled recklessly on the floor near him and began to expand rapidly into a pool of aromatic liquid onto the surface of the floor as the woman fell to one knee <strong>astonished that Jesus would seem so repulsed by her doting gesture.  </strong>Disgusted with the woman’s sin Jesus turned to his Disciples and the Pharisees in attendance and said “She should not have wasted that expensive perfume. It could have been sold and used to help the poor, the widows and orphans. What is <em>she</em> doing with it anyway?”\r\n\r\nIn the alleyway Peter held the woman roughly by the arm and without looking at her said “what did you think you were doing?  You know that your <strong>chosen lifestyle is not the kind that the Master agrees with.  Why, He can not even look at or be in the same room with you.  </strong>Once you turn from your evil ways and choose to live either a life of celibacy as an unworthy woman, or just marry a man like the rest of the women here, you can come back and the Rabbi will accept your gifts.  Until then, stay away. The Master will have nothing more to do with you.”\r\n\r\nThrough heaving sobs the woman looked up at Peter and managed to say, \"B-but Simon is a Leper...\"\r\n\r\n\"...At least he\'s a man.  But you...   What are you anyway?\" Peter said as he shoved the young woman towards the street harshly causing her to trip and fall sharply onto the ground, broken, and even more distraught then before.  Peter smiled smugly, then went back inside.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/woman_9.jpg\"><img class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-571\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/woman_9-300x248.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"248\" /></a>\r\n\r\nWith this last round of rejection in mind, the young girl lay silently on her side in the dirt, her knees drawn to her chest, both hands clasped tightly over her ears, tears streaming down the side of her face while sounds of guffawing laughter echoed loudly into the alleyway from Simon’s house.  Jesus had finally obtained acceptance by his peers -- the Pharisees, for making clear his stance against at least one of the established religious rejects of the day. <strong>There would no longer be a need for his death. </strong>\r\n[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAHq9byLyyI&amp;w=420&amp;h=315]','The Alabaster Jar - A Parable','','inherit','open','open','','55-revision-28','','','2011-10-21 10:27:57','2011-10-21 17:27:57','',55,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/21/55-revision-28/',0,'revision','',0),(869,4,'2011-10-21 10:37:51','2011-10-21 17:37:51','Now the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread were just two days away, and the Pharisees — the chief priests and teachers of the law were trying to figure out how to arrest Jesus and kill him.  They decided to wait until after the celebrations for fear that others would riot against the established church.\r\n\r\nSo they sent spies to watch the heretic in action in order to gather some hard evidence to justify the death penalty.  Flash forward a few days to Bethany.  Jesus is reclining in the main living area of a house owned by a man named Simon who happens to be a leper.  His disciples are with him and so are the spies.\r\n\r\nSuddenly a beautiful and distraught woman came into the room holding an alabaster jar in her arms.  As her eyes wildly searched each face, Jesus realized who she was.  <strong>The jar contained perfume made of pure nard and cost the woman a year’s wages.</strong>\r\n\r\nLocking eyes onto him she smiled, bent down low and broke the jar, and began to move towards Jesus so that she might anoint him with the contents.  However, knowing her intentions, Jesus quickly moved to the side avoiding the woman with her expensive perfume as he motioned to his disciple Peter with a single glance.\r\n\r\nThe perfume spilled recklessly on the floor near him and began to expand rapidly into a pool of aromatic liquid onto the surface of the floor as the woman fell to one knee <strong>astonished that Jesus would seem so repulsed by her doting gesture.  </strong>Disgusted with the woman’s sin Jesus turned to his Disciples and the Pharisees in attendance and said “She should not have wasted that expensive perfume. It could have been sold and used to help the poor, the widows and orphans. What is <em>she</em> doing with it anyway?”\r\n\r\nIn the alleyway Peter held the woman roughly by the arm and without looking at her said “what did you think you were doing?  You know that your <strong>chosen lifestyle is not the kind that the Master agrees with.  Why, He can not even look at or be in the same room with you.  </strong>Once you turn from your evil ways and choose to live either a life of celibacy as an unworthy woman, or just marry a man like the rest of the women here, you can come back and the Rabbi will accept your gifts.  Until then, stay away. The Master will have nothing more to do with you.”\r\n\r\nThrough heaving sobs the woman looked up at Peter and managed to say, \"B-but Simon is a Leper...\"\r\n\r\n\"...At least he\'s a man.  But you...   What are you anyway?\" Peter said as he shoved the young woman towards the street harshly causing her to trip and fall sharply onto the ground, broken, and even more distraught then before.  Peter smiled smugly, then went back inside.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/woman_9.jpg\"><img class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-571\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/woman_9-300x248.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"248\" /></a>\r\n\r\nWith this last round of rejection in mind, the young girl lay silently on her side in the dirt, her knees drawn to her chest, both hands clasped tightly over her ears, tears streaming down the side of her face while sounds of guffawing laughter echoed loudly into the alleyway from Simon’s house.  Jesus had finally obtained acceptance by his peers -- the Pharisees, for making clear his stance against at least one of the established religious rejects of the day. <strong>There would no longer be a need for his death. </strong>\r\n[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKfY6BBkelk&amp;w=420&amp;h=315]','The Alabaster Jar - A Parable','','inherit','open','open','','55-revision-29','','','2011-10-21 10:37:51','2011-10-21 17:37:51','',55,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/21/55-revision-29/',0,'revision','',0),(1364,1,'2011-10-28 13:36:04','2011-10-28 20:36:04','Today is a rather profound day for women in the world and it just might go unnoticed. Reuters is reporting that the British Monarch has <a href=\"http://news.yahoo.com/girl-british-royal-succession-rules-change-104444789.html\" target=\"_blank\">changed its rules regarding succession</a>. Commonwealth leaders agreed to drop rules that give sons precedence as heir to the throne. In other words, if Prince William and his wife Kate have a girl, she can become the ruling monarch.  Under the old rules, a younger brother would be given precedence.\r\n\r\nBritish Prime Minister David Cameron called the rules of succession outdated.\r\n<blockquote>\"The idea that a younger son should become monarch instead of an elder daughter simply because he is a man, or that a future monarch can marry someone of any faith except a Catholic, this way of thinking is at odds with the modern countries that we\'ve all become.\"</blockquote>\r\nWhat is interesting about the post-modern age is that many deeply held traditions are being overturned.  And the excuse given is that it is simply outdated.  But does outdated mean it was wrong in the first place or has simply outlived it\'s usefulness?\r\n\r\nAnd what does this say to the women of the world?  Is it recognition or redemption for something that should have happened a long time ago?\r\n\r\nWhat do you think?','British Royal Changes Its Rule For Women','','publish','open','open','','british-royal-changes-its-rule-for-women','','','2011-10-28 13:36:04','2011-10-28 20:36:04','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=1364',0,'post','',0),(1058,1,'2011-10-24 18:18:37','2011-10-25 01:18:37','<em>This is part three in my series about the six reasons why I left the church based off of the article \"<a href=\"http://www.barna.org/teens-next-gen-articles/528-six-reasons-young-christians-leave-church\" target=\"_blank\">Six Reasons Why Young Christians Leave Church</a>\" by the Barna Group. Now, I realize that there are vast differences between when and how guys and girls first experience sexuality, so this by no means is to be a blanket generalization for anyone.</em>\n\n<em>Miss the first two parts of this series? Read <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2011/10/23/where-the-church-lost-me-i/\" target=\"_blank\">part one</a> and <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2011/10/23/where-the-church-lost-me-ii/\" target=\"_blank\">part two</a>.</em>\n\n<strong>Reason #4: “Young Christians’ church experiences related to sexuality are often simplistic, judgmental.”</strong>\n\nOne of my favorite bloggers, Christian Piatt, wrote about this recently on <a href=\"http://www.patheos.com/blogs/christianpiatt/2011/10/sex-is-dirty-save-it-for-marriage/\" target=\"_blank\">his blog</a>:\n<blockquote>\"Amy and I speak to youth and young adults pretty often about something we call embodied spirituality. The idea is that, contrary to what you may have learned in the past, you do not have to de-sexualize yourself to be a good person – even at church. We’re told in some ways that sex is a dirty thing, and that our bodies are something to be ashamed of. But then we also get the message that sex is something special to save for marriage. Something about these two values doesn’t match up.\"</blockquote>\n<a href=\"http://behappyhealthywhole.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">My sister</a> and I were talking about this recently and she said:\n<blockquote>“There’s a difference between protecting and isolating.”</blockquote>\nUp until I was about 18 I was almost unaware that I was not simply a brain walking around. I don’t mean that literally, but things like lust and sexual thoughts were just theoretical issues. While my ex-boyfriend and I were in our long-distance relationship, he sent me a picture of him wearing a new outfit. I don’t remember what it was exactly, but I think it was a new suit coat or something. I said he looked “snazzy”. He was immediately offended because he was looking for a word with a little bit more heat. He asked me one night why it wasn’t natural for me to use words like “sexy” and “hot”. I explained that I had essentially turned all that off because growing up in church I was always told that anything to do with the body was sinful.\n\nOnce a year, there was a three week long purity series where the Sunday school class was split up by guys and girls. (Funnily enough, nothing made me want the guys back together with us more than this annual series. <em>Just make it stop!</em>) This Sunday school course was the most awkward thing in church since clapping. (What is this \"rhythm\" you speak of?)\n\nFirstly, the female leaders who ran the series couldn’t say the word “sex”. For a while they said “ex” and then eventually avoided it all together by referring to it as “it”. This does not setup a good precedence for an honest conversation. I get it: it’s awkward to talk about that post-movie hotness you had with your spouse the other night with teenage girls that seem like little bright-eyed deer that shouldn\'t have to deal with this messy, acutely intimate thing called sex. And while church may not be the place to teach about sex, the youth sponsors talked as if they were not just taking on the role of our mentor in the church place but also in the rest of our lives. So, unfortunately, sex questions fall under that category. Aside from my parents, you are the set of adults I see the most. Lead with honesty and frankness.\n\nNext was the “modest clothing demonstration”. The girl they used to model the outfit was built just like me (six feet tall, thin frame). They bought a full outfit for her that was a size small. It fit her well; the outfit wasn’t too tight and it fit her frame nicely. But explained then the leaders demonstrated how this outfit was indecent because if you reach your shoulders and arms as high as you can with zero regard to your shirt it <em>may</em> show a tiny bit of skin. Or how if you bend in half with your legs straight (which no girl I know does this anyway) you<em>might</em> see a bit of her back. So then the model left the room and changed into the same outfit but with all the items one size up. This time the outfit clearly didn’t work. You could tell neither piece was the right size because it didn’t lay correctly or fit in the right places, but this outfit was praised as modest, beautiful, and how all good young women should dress.\n\nThe message was clear: the second, less fitting, one size too large outfit was much godlier. God doesn’t want your clothes to fit. Loose clothing, like cleanliness, is next to godliness! If you look and feel good in your own clothing you’re making the boys stumble. Cut it out.\n\nNot only were there messages of de-sexualization (women, your bodies are the manifestation of temptation so to be really godly you need to wear parkas), but there were very blatant mistakes in the material of the lessons. There was The List. The List detailed all the physical steps through to actual intercourse. It was a list of eight items starting at “hand holding”. It was designed to show that if you get to step number four with guy A, you are going to want to jump to step four with guy B. That makes sense. What didn’t make sense was that “heavy petting” was number six and the last physical step that two people commit before inserting tab A into slot B was “hugging”. HUGGING. (I wish I was joking.) If hugging is the last step before sexin’, then I have definitely been around (<a href=\"http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ljj7z5fHsr1qdf6w8o1_250.gif\">if you know what I mean</a>).\n\nOutside of the purity series, this fear of anything sexual showed up in places like our non-dancing prom (because dancing requires you use your hips, and hips are sinful): Senior Banquet. We were endlessly told we were not allowed to wear strapless dresses. Reason being? “The boys will wonder where your bra is.” I told this to my friend <a href=\"http://theawesomeproject.net/\" target=\"_blank\">Drew</a> and he responded, “Well yeah, but that’s purely academic!” Plunging necklines? Fine. Dresses so tight they may as well have been air brushed? Fine. But don\'t you <em>dare</em> let those boys think that there are such things as strapless bras in this country or have a modest neckline by not showing cleavage!\n\nThe message was reinforced in literature as well. I specifically remember reading several sob stories about sex in the Christian girl’s magazine Brio (by Focus on the Family). The stories always included the following:\n<ul>\n	<li>The phrase “all the way.” Example: “I never thought that I would go all the way with a guy.”</li>\n	<li>The <em>girl</em> must be uncomfortable or unsure and the <em>guy</em> must be pressuring her. Example: “I knew it was wrong, but he kept unbuttoning my shirt and told me to relax.”</li>\n	<li>The phrase “it just happened”. They are sure to insinuate that if you kiss someone, even just a little, your body will go into a frenzied auto-pilot and you will have manic sex against your will. Example: “I never thought I would get pregnant and I never thought I would have premarital sex, but it just happened…” Cue mournful voice. Like <a href=\"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0425210/\" target=\"_blank\">Slevin</a> said after his girlfriend claimed that her infidelity was an accident: “What like… He tripped, you fell?” (Maybe he Kansas City Shuffled his way into her pants. You never know with that movie.)</li>\n</ul>\nIf these had all be isolated incidents it might not have been so bad, but altogether these things told me that my body was something to be ashamed of. Anything that made me feel confident or beautiful was me bringing my brother down. The only thing I knew to do was be afraid and suppress anything corporeal.\n\nNow, for all intents and purposes, this works to the leaders’ advantage. It did keep me from promiscuity through high school (and I am trying to learn to be thankful for that) but it did for all the wrong reasons. It wasn’t because I had been informed and was making smart decisions; it was because I was operating solely out of fear and ignorance. It’s fine when you’re 15 and you don\'t instinctively describe something as \"steamy\". What’s not okay is when you’re not far from getting married and you have to suddenly have to turn all of those signals back on that you spent the first 18-20 years of your life ignoring. After being told that your body is sinful over and over, how do you transition to wild, mind-blowing sex? Talk about major signal confusion. Through age 18: sex is sinful, God hates sex! By the time you get married: sex is great, have lots of it! This is a common problem for newlywed Christians. They have no healthy respect or understanding of their bodies and suddenly they are supposed to know what they like in bed and how to fulfill their partner’s desires too? (Some friends of mine started <a href=\"http://couplingforcouples.blogspot.com/?zx=3bbe204db1a81e96\" target=\"_blank\">a blog</a> about this very subject to help unprepared people work through this.)\n\nIf you have a kid in your life that’s approaching the age where you need to start talking about stuff like this, consider finding ways to express to them the following:\n<ul>\n	<li>The body is an amazing thing. There are reasons why people create nude statues out of marble. It’s not because they love porn. It’s because the human body is an incredibly beautiful, intricate, glorious thing. Don’t be afraid of it.</li>\n	<li>Sex is biological. Like hunger and thirst, the need to be sexual and to have sexual encounters with another person is part of what you are made to do. This is absolutely normal.</li>\n	<li>Just because sex is biological doesn’t mean you need to exploit it or doing anything before you are ready to handle the consequences and how your life will be changed by it.</li>\n	<li>You are not just a body. While sexual thoughts and impulses are completely normal, you have the ability to control what you choose to do with them. Despite popular belief, the opposite sex can control all those things too.</li>\n</ul>\nThis is just for starters, and I have no idea how I’ll handle this conversation with my kids, but I know I’ll start there because I don’t want them to get on the other side of this issue and feel unprepared. I want them to have healthy attitudes towards their own bodies and other peoples’.\n\n<em>Next I\'ll be talking about how the church is unfriendly towards those who doubt.</em>','Where the Church Lost Me: Part III','','inherit','open','open','','1052-autosave','','','2011-10-24 18:18:37','2011-10-25 01:18:37','',1052,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/23/1052-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(1057,38,'2011-10-23 19:48:03','2011-10-24 02:48:03','<em>This is post number three in my series about the six reasons why I left the church based off <a href=\"http://www.barna.org/teens-next-gen-articles/528-six-reasons-young-christians-leave-church\" target=\"_blank\">this article</a> by the Barna Group. I realize that there are vast differences between when and how guys and girls first experience sexuality, so this by no means is to be a blanket generalization. </em>\n\n<em>Miss the first two parts of this series? Read <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2011/10/23/where-the-church-lost-me-iii/\" target=\"_blank\">part one</a> and <a href=\"http://www.soullikeaspider.com/blog/2011/10/12/where-the-church-lost-me-part-ii.html\" target=\"_blank\">part two</a>.</em>\n\n<strong>Reason #4: “Young Christians’ church experiences related to sexuality are often simplistic, judgmental.”</strong>\n\nOne of my favorite bloggers, Christian Piatt, wrote about this recently on <a href=\"http://www.patheos.com/blogs/christianpiatt/2011/10/sex-is-dirty-save-it-for-marriage/\" target=\"_blank\">his blog</a>:\n<blockquote>\"Amy and I speak to youth and young adults pretty often about something we call embodied spirituality. The idea is that, contrary to what you may have learned in the past, you do not have to de-sexualize yourself to be a good person – even at church. We’re told in some ways that sex is a dirty thing, and that our bodies are something to be ashamed of. But then we also get the message that sex is something special to save for marriage. Something about these two values doesn’t match up.\"</blockquote>\n<a href=\"http://behappyhealthywhole.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">My sister</a> and I were talking about this recently and she said:\n<blockquote>“There’s a difference between protecting and isolating.”</blockquote>\nUp until I was about 18 I was almost unaware that I was not simply a brain walking around. I don’t mean that literally, but things like lust and sexual thoughts were just theoretical issues. While <a href=\"http://www.soullikeaspider.com/blog/2011/8/5/the-debt-of-friendship-or-adam-fell-in-love-with-a-girl.html\" target=\"_blank\">Adam</a> and I were in our long-distance relationship, he sent me a picture of him wearing a new outfit. I don’t remember what it was exactly, but I think it was a new suit coat or something. I said he looked “snazzy”. He was immediately offended because he was looking for a word with a little bit more heat. He asked me one night why it wasn’t natural for me to use words like “sexy” and “hot”. I explained that I had essentially turned all that off because growing up in church I was always told that anything to do with the body was sinful.\n\nOnce a year, there was a three week long purity series where the Sunday school class was split up by guys and girls. (Funnily enough, nothing made me want the guys back together with us more than this annual series. <em>Just make it stop!</em>) This Sunday school course was the most awkward thing in church since clapping. (What is this \"rhythm\" you speak of?)\n\nFirstly, the female leaders who ran the series couldn’t say the word “sex”. For a while they said “ex” and then eventually avoided it all together by referring to it as “it”. This does not setup a good precedence for an honest conversation. I get it: it’s awkward to talk about that post-movie hotness you had with your spouse the other night with teenage girls that seem like little bright-eyed deer that shouldn\'t have to deal with this messy, acutely intimate thing called sex. And while church may not be the place to teach about sex, the youth sponsors talked as if they were not just taking on the role of our mentor in the church place but also in the rest of our lives. So, unfortunately, sex questions fall under that category. Aside from my parents, you are the set of adults I see the most. Lead with honesty and frankness.\n\nNext was the “modest clothing demonstration”. The girl they used to model the outfit was built just like me (six feet tall, thin frame). They bought a full outfit for her that was a size small. It fit her well; the outfit wasn’t too tight and it fit her frame nicely. But explained then the leaders demonstrated how this outfit was indecent because if you reach your shoulders and arms as high as you can with zero regard to your shirt it <em>may</em> show a tiny bit of skin. Or how if you bend in half with your legs straight (which no girl I know does this anyway) you<em>might</em> see a bit of her back. So then the model left the room and changed into the same outfit but with all the items one size up. This time the outfit clearly didn’t work. You could tell neither piece was the right size because it didn’t lay correctly or fit in the right places, but this outfit was praised as modest, beautiful, and how all good young women should dress.\n\nThe message was clear: the second, less fitting, one size too large outfit was much godlier. God doesn’t want your clothes to fit. Loose clothing, like cleanliness, is next to godliness! If you look and feel good in your own clothing you’re making the boys stumble. Cut it out.\n\nNot only were there messages of de-sexualization (women, your bodies are the manifestation of temptation so to be really godly you need to wear parkas), but there were very blatant mistakes in the material of the lessons. There was The List. The List detailed all the physical steps through to actual intercourse. It was a list of eight items starting at “hand holding”. It was designed to show that if you get to step number four with guy A, you are going to want to jump to step four with guy B. That makes sense. What didn’t make sense was that “heavy petting” was number six and the last physical step that two people commit before inserting tab A into slot B was “hugging”. HUGGING. (I wish I was joking.) If hugging is the last step before sexin’, then I have definitely been around (<a href=\"http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ljj7z5fHsr1qdf6w8o1_250.gif\">if you know what I mean</a>).\n\nOutside of the purity series, this fear of anything sexual showed up in places like our non-dancing prom (because dancing requires you use your hips, and hips are sinful): Senior Banquet. We were endlessly told we were not allowed to wear strapless dresses. Reason being? “The boys will wonder where your bra is.” I told this to my friend <a href=\"http://theawesomeproject.net/\" target=\"_blank\">Drew</a> and he responded, “Well yeah, but that’s purely academic!” Plunging necklines? Fine. Dresses so tight they may as well have been air brushed? Fine. But don\'t you <em>dare</em> let those boys think that there are such things as strapless bras in this country or have a modest neckline by not showing cleavage!\n\nThe message was reinforced in literature as well. I specifically remember reading several sob stories about sex in the Christian girl’s magazine Brio (by Focus on the Family). The stories always included the following:\n\n- The phrase “all the way.” Example: “I never thought that I would go all the way with a guy.”\n\n- The <em>girl</em> must be uncomfortable or unsure and the <em>guy</em> must be pressuring her. Example: “I knew it was wrong, but he kept unbuttoning my shirt and told me to relax.”\n\n- The phrase “it just happened”. They are sure to insinuate that if you kiss someone, even just a little, your body will go into a frenzied auto-pilot and you will have manic sex against your will. Example: “I never thought I would get pregnant and I never thought I would have premarital sex, but it just happened…” Cue mournful voice. Like <a href=\"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0425210/\" target=\"_blank\">Slevin</a> said after his girlfriend claimed that her infidelity was an accident: “What like… He tripped, you fell?” (Maybe he Kansas City Shuffled his way into her pants. You never know with that movie.)\n\nIf these had all be isolated incidents it might not have been so bad, but altogether these things told me that my body was something to be ashamed of. Anything that made me feel confident or beautiful was me bringing my brother down. The only thing I knew to do was be afraid and suppress anything corporeal.\n\nNow, for all intents and purposes, this works to the leaders’ advantage. It did keep me from promiscuity through high school (and I am trying to learn to be thankful for that) but it did for all the wrong reasons. It wasn’t because I had been informed and was making smart decisions; it was because I was operating solely out of fear and ignorance. It’s fine when you’re 15 and you don\'t instinctively describe something as \"steamy\". What’s not okay is when you’re not far from getting married and you have to suddenly have to turn all of those signals back on that you spent the first 18-20 years of your life ignoring. After being told that your body is sinful over and over, how do you transition to wild, mind-blowing sex? Talk about major signal confusion. Through age 18: sex is sinful, God hates sex! By the time you get married: sex is great, have lots of it! This is a common problem for newlywed Christians. They have no healthy respect or understanding of their bodies and suddenly they are supposed to know what they like in bed and how to fulfill their partner’s desires too? (Some friends of mine started <a href=\"http://couplingforcouples.blogspot.com/?zx=3bbe204db1a81e96\" target=\"_blank\">a blog</a> about this very subject to help unprepared people work through this.)\n\nIf you have a kid in your life that’s approaching the age where you need to start talking about stuff like this, consider finding ways to express to them the following:\n\n- The body is an amazing thing. There are reasons why people create nude statues out of marble. It’s not because they love porn. It’s because the human body is an incredibly beautiful, intricate, glorious thing. Don’t be afraid of it.\n\n- Sex is biological. Like hunger and thirst, the need to be sexual and to have sexual encounters with another person is part of what you are made to do. This is absolutely normal.\n\n- Just because sex is biological doesn’t mean you need to exploit it or doing anything before you are ready to handle the consequences and how your life will be changed by it.\n\n- You are not just a body. While sexual thoughts and impulses are completely normal, you have the ability to control what you choose to do with them. Despite popular belief, the opposite sex can control all those things too.\n\nThis is just for starters, and I have no idea how I’ll handle this conversation with my kids, but I know I’ll start there because I don’t want them to get on the other side of this issue and feel unprepared. I want them to have healthy attitudes towards their own bodies and other peoples’.\n\n<em>Next I\'ll be talking about how the church is unfriendly towards those who doubt.</em>','Where the Church Lost Me: Part III','','inherit','open','open','','1052-revision-2','','','2011-10-23 19:48:03','2011-10-24 02:48:03','',1052,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/23/1052-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(876,1,'2011-10-21 10:41:56','2011-10-21 17:41:56','Now the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread were just two days away, and the Pharisees — the chief priests and teachers of the law were trying to figure out how to arrest Jesus and kill him.  They decided to wait until after the celebrations for fear that others would riot against the established church.\r\n\r\nSo they sent spies to watch the heretic in action in order to gather some hard evidence to justify the death penalty.  Flash forward a few days to Bethany.  Jesus is reclining in the main living area of a house owned by a man named Simon who happens to be a leper.  His disciples are with him and so are the spies.\r\n\r\nSuddenly a beautiful and distraught woman came into the room holding an alabaster jar in her arms.  As her eyes wildly searched each face, Jesus realized who she was.  <strong>The jar contained perfume made of pure nard and cost the woman a year’s wages.</strong>\r\n\r\nLocking eyes onto him she smiled, bent down low and broke the jar, and began to move towards Jesus so that she might anoint him with the contents.  However, knowing her intentions, Jesus quickly moved to the side avoiding the woman with her expensive perfume as he motioned to his disciple Peter with a single glance.\r\n\r\nThe perfume spilled recklessly on the floor near him and began to expand rapidly into a pool of aromatic liquid onto the surface of the floor as the woman fell to one knee <strong>astonished that Jesus would seem so repulsed by her doting gesture.  </strong>Disgusted with the woman’s sin Jesus turned to his Disciples and the Pharisees in attendance and said “She should not have wasted that expensive perfume. It could have been sold and used to help the poor, the widows and orphans. What is <em>she</em> doing with it anyway?”\r\n\r\nIn the alleyway Peter held the woman roughly by the arm and without looking at her said “what did you think you were doing?  You know that your <strong>chosen lifestyle is not the kind that the Master agrees with.  Why, He can not even look at or be in the same room with you.  </strong>Once you turn from your evil ways and choose to live either a life of celibacy as an unworthy woman, or just marry a man like the rest of the women here, you can come back and the Rabbi will accept your gifts.  Until then, stay away. The Master will have nothing more to do with you.”\r\n\r\nThrough heaving sobs the woman looked up at Peter and managed to say, \"B-but Simon is a Leper...\"\r\n\r\n\"...At least he\'s a man.  But you...   What are you anyway?\" Peter said as he shoved the young woman towards the street harshly causing her to trip and fall sharply onto the ground, broken, and even more distraught then before.  Peter smiled smugly, then went back inside.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/woman_9.jpg\"><img class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-571\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/woman_9-300x248.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"248\" /></a>\r\n\r\nWith this last round of rejection in mind, the young girl lay silently on her side in the dirt, her knees drawn to her chest, both hands clasped tightly over her ears, tears streaming down the side of her face while sounds of guffawing laughter echoed loudly into the alleyway from Simon’s house.  Jesus had finally obtained acceptance by his peers -- the Pharisees, for making clear his stance against at least one of the established religious rejects of the day. <strong>There would no longer be a need for his death. </strong>\r\n[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAHq9byLyyI&w=420&h=315]\r\n','The Alabaster Jar - A Parable','','inherit','open','open','','55-revision-31','','','2011-10-21 10:41:56','2011-10-21 17:41:56','',55,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/21/55-revision-31/',0,'revision','',0),(877,4,'2011-10-21 10:53:30','2011-10-21 17:53:30','Now the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread were just two days away, and the Pharisees — the chief priests and teachers of the law were trying to figure out how to arrest Jesus and kill him.  They decided to wait until after the celebrations for fear that others would riot against the established church.\r\n\r\nSo they sent spies to watch the heretic in action in order to gather some hard evidence to justify the death penalty.  Flash forward a few days to Bethany.  Jesus is reclining in the main living area of a house owned by a man named Simon who happens to be a leper.  His disciples are with him and so are the spies.\r\n\r\nSuddenly a beautiful and distraught woman came into the room holding an alabaster jar in her arms.  As her eyes wildly searched each face, Jesus realized who she was.  <strong>The jar contained perfume made of pure nard and cost the woman a year’s wages.</strong>\r\n\r\nLocking eyes onto him she smiled, bent down low and broke the jar, and began to move towards Jesus so that she might anoint him with the contents.  However, knowing her intentions, Jesus quickly moved to the side avoiding the woman with her expensive perfume as he motioned to his disciple Peter with a single glance.\r\n\r\nThe perfume spilled recklessly on the floor near him and began to expand rapidly into a pool of aromatic liquid onto the surface of the floor as the woman fell to one knee <strong>astonished that Jesus would seem so repulsed by her doting gesture.  </strong>Disgusted with the woman’s sin Jesus turned to his Disciples and the Pharisees in attendance and said “She should not have wasted that expensive perfume. It could have been sold and used to help the poor, the widows and orphans. What is <em>she</em> doing with it anyway?”\r\n\r\nIn the alleyway Peter held the woman roughly by the arm and without looking at her said “what did you think you were doing?  You know that your <strong>chosen lifestyle is not the kind that the Master agrees with.  Why, He can not even look at or be in the same room with you.  </strong>Once you turn from your evil ways and choose to live either a life of celibacy as an unworthy woman, or just marry a man like the rest of the women here, you can come back and the Rabbi will accept your gifts.  Until then, stay away. The Master will have nothing more to do with you.”\r\n\r\nThrough heaving sobs the woman looked up at Peter and managed to say, \"B-but Simon is a Leper...\"\r\n\r\n\"...At least he\'s a man.  But you...   What are you anyway?\" Peter said as he shoved the young woman towards the street harshly causing her to trip and fall sharply onto the ground, broken, and even more distraught then before.  Peter smiled smugly, then went back inside.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/woman_9.jpg\"><img class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-571\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/woman_9-300x248.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"248\" /></a>\r\n\r\nWith this last round of rejection in mind, the young girl lay silently on her side in the dirt, her knees drawn to her chest, both hands clasped tightly over her ears, tears streaming down the side of her face while sounds of guffawing laughter echoed loudly into the alleyway from Simon’s house.  Jesus had finally obtained acceptance by his peers -- the Pharisees, for making clear his stance against at least one of the established religious rejects of the day. <strong>There would no longer be a need for his death. </strong>\r\n[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAHq9byLyyI]','The Alabaster Jar - A Parable','','inherit','open','open','','55-revision-32','','','2011-10-21 10:53:30','2011-10-21 17:53:30','',55,'http://provoketive.com/2011/10/21/55-revision-32/',0,'revision','',0),