During the past week, the media in our part of the country were all over the Superintendent of a local school district for having a shower installed in his office over the summer, costing the school district $4,000.00. For more on this, take a look at the following video:
Tag Archives: Gary Wiram
We The Purple
This past Wednesday, I wore a black ball cap that has NYPD embroidered in large white letters on its front. In smaller white letters, 9-11-01 is embroidered on its back. I bought the cap during the week following that 9/11 at a Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa memorial service. I’ve made it a point to wear it on every 9/11 since then. I guess it’s sort of my Ebenezer to raise, to honor those who lost their lives on that tragic day in American history. I’m pleased to observe that it seems I’m not yet alone in paying this sort of tribute. However, I’m sorry to say it seems that we’ve all but lost a very important gain we realized through our great loss. It was rediscovering the strength of our being One Nation, Under God. Sadly and maybe even more tragically than 9/11 itself,we have failed to cling to and nurture what we gained on9-12-01.
For me, the apparent prospects for gain were symbolized by seeing President (R) Bush and Senator (D) Daschle hug, as the President arrived to address a joint session of Congress, shortly after the 9/11 tragedy. However, in an article entitled The President Bush/Senator Daschle Hug – 7 Years Later, I lamented that our nation was letting that prospective gain slip through its fingers. Instead, for the most part, we’ve returned to the course that political polar-opposites, Bob Beckel and Cal Thomas warned us against in their co-authored book, Common Ground: How to Stop the Partisan War That Is Destroying America. That book explores the people and groups that the authors believe have artificially deepened the divide between liberals and conservatives in America. In the book’s Introduction, they say, “We intend to put polarization on trial. We will introduce an abundance of evidence detailing the damage polarization has inflicted on politics, and why this insidious culture continues to operate to the benefit of the few and to the detriment of the many.” Continue reading
Filed under community, democracy, diversity, leadership, Making a Difference, politics
God’s UPS Drivers
In a recent post, entitled American Heroes and Idols, I lamented our culture idolizing self-serving public figures like Alex Rodriguez, instead of heralding other-oriented public servants. I ended that post by saying, “I plan to detail examples of these (more wholesome role models) in one or more future posts.” I’m beginning this by using today’s article to tell you about one of these true heroes in the community where I live. My intent is for this to be the inaugural post for a separate page on Here I Raise My Ebenezer, to catalog the stories of these, often, unsung heroes. My hope is that you, our Readers, will send us recommendations for articles like this about such heroes that you become aware of in your life. It doesn’t matter if the impact of their efforts is local or national or international. They may be people effecting great community service who just don’t seek the limelight. Or, they could be public figures who, outside of what they’re best known for, are quietly using their blessings to bless others. Regardless, please send us your recommendations so that we can share them, as examples of true heroes who selflessly build up our community rather than selfishly adding to its decline.
The man behind the following video, entitled US Digital Reaches Out, is the subject of our first article in this series.
Filed under community, Making a Difference
American Heroes and Idols
The kickoff of the NFL’s 2013 Regular Season was this past Thursday, September 5th. So, the enthusiasm of NFL fanatics for their idols is in full ramp-up mode. That fervor will reach a crescendo with Super Bowl XLVIII. Although I’m an MLB fan and not an NFL fan, there’s a part of me that has looked forward to this, to help take the spotlight off of the disgusting circumstances surrounding the MLB’s highest-paid player, Alex Rodriguez.
There’s no denying that Rodriguez is greatly gifted with baseball talent, talent that makes him more than qualified to be a sports hero. And, having sports heroes can be a good thing. My baseball hero, growing up, was Mickey Mantle. Of course, when I criticize Rodriquez as compared to Mantle, as a sports hero, others consistently bring up Mantle’s alcoholism. However, that was not commonly known during the Mick’s playing days and it had nothing to do with his reputation as a sports hero. He was looked to, as a role model, for the way he played the game on the field and nothing else. On the other hand, AROD’s off-the-field misbehavior is well-known. Sort of belying the present uproar, his use of steroids has been common knowledge for sometime. And then there’s his infidelity, leading to divorce, followed by serial womanizing. To me, it’s disturbing enough that, with these things out in the open, he has continued to be looked upon as a sports hero. What I find more disturbing is that he has been idolized for these very behaviors.
Purple Mountain Travesty
Often, Baby Boomers, like me, are heard lamenting about things that aren’t “like they were when we were growing up.” These complaints can come off as one wishing to relive their childhood. In some instances, that, in fact, may be the case. In this instance, my grief is over losing a foundational quality to the greatness of American culture, a quality that drew our predecessors to this land in the first place. The following brief piece, presented by Bret Baier and Peter Boyer, of Fox News, is a good way to set the stage for what I want to address in this article:
The tragedy of America’s great food stamp binge
The Pro-Abortion Weapon Of Choice?
IT’S THE COAT HANGER!
Whenever I share my pro-life views, an abortion advocate is sure to come along to wave a coat hanger in my face, to recite a litany of pro-abortion talking points and to use those to presumptuously label me. It continues to baffle me why, when both individuals involved in this confrontation obviously care deeply about the topic, a discussion doesn’t ensue, where both parties actually try to listen to and understand the other’s perspective. Although I think my stance is reasonable and should invite constructive dialog, maybe there’s something I don’t see in it that results in the non-starter I’ve described. So, with that in mind, let me see if I can summarize what I see as my reasonable stance.
My pro-life views seem to line up well with those of Dr. Alveda King. If you’re not familiar with Dr. King, I recommend that you check her out, starting with her Priests For Life page. She is the niece of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and she describes herself as “a civil rights activist, speaking out on issues that face society today.” In summarizing her stance on abortion, she starts by saying:
“In the ongoing travesty of the debate over whether abortion … should be condoned, a voice in the wilderness continues to cry out, ‘what about the children?‘ We have been fueled by the fire of ‘women’s rights‘ so long that we have become deaf to the outcry of the real victims whose rights are being trampled upon, the babies and the mothers. Of course a woman has a right to decide what to do with her own body. Thank God for the Constitution. Yet, she also has a right to know the serious consequences and repercussions of making a decision to abort her child. Then too, what about the rights of each baby who is artificially breached before coming to term in his or her mother’s womb?“
My sharing Dr. King’s position, acknowledging that “a woman has a right to decide what to do with her own body”, is the main reason why I continue to be bewildered that abortion advocates still insist on assailing me with their talking points, rather than investing in a constructive discussion. Since I still don’t see a cause for this in my stance, perhaps I can find the cause by taking a closer look at some of the talking points I hear most often.
Continue reading
Filed under abortion
Because I Love My Homosexual Friends
From: Michele Phoenix
I’ve been encouraged NOT to publish this article. “You’re going to get slammed,” a friend warned, knowing well that this topic can turn pacifists into thugs. But I have to speak up. I have friends, former students and relatives who are homosexual. Each one of them is beautiful, valuable and honorable. I love them. I want them to know that I do—in all my magnificent cluelessness! I don’t ever want them to think that their sexual identity and choices make them somehow less worthy of my loyalty than my heterosexual friends. So…thanks for the words of warning, but I need to voice these thoughts. And if my inbox fills with hate mail again (it has before—it hurts when it does), I’ll deal with it.
Three preemptive explanations for the sake of clarity:
- When referencing The Church, I am referring to “traditional” evangelical churches, particularly those that have expressed hatred toward the homosexual community. I know there are exceptions.
- This article is written from the perspective of this Jesus-follower. I mention “sin” in the context of the Christian faith, as a conservative interpretation of the Bible defines it. If you do not believe in the Bible’s authority, I understand that “sin” will sound offensive to you. That is not my intention. I am a sinner. I live in (and can thrive in spite of) that reality.
- I acknowledge that there are multiple theological stances regarding homosexuality and faith. This is not a personal manifesto on the topic. It is an essay about our failure to love.
Land Where The Fathers Hide
WHERE’S DAD?
According to my Pastor, “…human relationships – particularly when united in fellowship with God – (are) the foundational building blocks … and the backbone of (our) local communities and culture.” I wholly agree with that and I’ve added to it by saying, “Without that foundation, secular goals – e.g. a thriving and stable economy, affordable quality healthcare, affordable quality education, justice for all, etc. – are unattainable. When communities and culture come apart, so do all things relying on the support of that foundation.
In another recent Teaching (from Matthew 19: 13-15), my Pastor touched on the dramatic deterioration our culture continues to experience with one of these “foundational building blocks”. This aspect of cultural devolution has been labeled “Fatherlessness”. Since this reality has significantly impacted my life, from near the beginning to the present day, raising the topic touches me deeply.
Before delving into this matter, first, I must issue a disclaimer. I am not fatherless in terms of not knowing who my father is nor that he had no presence in my life. Although I didn’t grow up in my Dad’s home, I knew him and I love him dearly. When he died, at the age of 56, I was devastated. With that said, when I was only three years old, he left my mother, making her a single-parent … a term that wasn’t even used in those days … and I, along with my older brother and sister, became what were then known as children of a broken home. Looking back over the decades since that event, I’ve recognized that a male role model and mentor has always been lacking in my life and I’ve often wondered how different my life would have been if that void had been filled.
My “broken home” experience began over six decades ago, around 1950 to 1951. In those days, I and my siblings were the only “children of a broken home” that I knew. Sadly, since then, this has worsened exponentially. According to an article entitled Father Absence and the Welfare of Children, by Sara McLanahan:
“Increases in divorce and out-of-wedlock childbearing have dramatically altered the family life of American children. Whereas in the early 1960s, nearly 90 percent of all children lived with both of their biological parents until they reached adulthood, today less than half of children grow up with both natural parents. Nearly a third are born to unmarried parents, the majority of whom never live together, and another third are born to married parents who divorce before their child reaches adulthood. To further complicate matters, a substantial number of children are exposed to multiple marital disruptions and multiple father figures.”
WHAT HAPPENED?! Continue reading
Filed under Baby Boomers, commitment, community, Crime, Culture, economy, Education, Family, Fathers, Healthcare, Justice, Marriage, Substance Abuse
Starfish and Ideals
As this launch of Here I Raise My Ebenezer was coming close, it struck me that the old story of the Starfish Thrower would serve as an excellent metaphor for what this site is about. I can’t tell you how many years ago (probably decades) it was that I first heard this story but it immediately and deeply touched my heart. It still does, anytime I think of it. If you’re not familiar with the Starfish Thrower Story, here is a brief version:
A young girl was walking along a beach upon which thousands of starfish had been washed up during a terrible storm. When she came to each starfish, she would pick it up, and throw it back into the ocean. People watched her with amusement.
She had been doing this for some time when a man approached her and said, “Little girl, why are you doing this? Look at this beach! You can’t save all these starfish. You can’t begin to make a difference!”
The girl seemed crushed, suddenly deflated. But after a few moments, she bent down, picked up another starfish, and hurled it as far as she could into the ocean. Then she looked up at the man and replied,
“Well, I made a difference to that one!”
Often, when I’m confronted with the daily news, I have that same sense expressed by the man on the beach when he said, “Little girl, why are you doing this? Look at this beach! You can’t save all these starfish. You can’t begin to make a difference!” Today, we hear of so many things going so much in the wrong direction in our world that when we wish there was something we could do about it, it seems overwhelming. But, the little girl in the story responded in the right way, the way we should be responding to the issues facing us, when she just diligently went back to the work that could be done immediately before her, saying, “Well, I made a difference to that one!”
The About page of this site says, “The aim of this site is to serve as a platform for presenting views that support America’s founding ideals, rooted in Judeo-Christian values, relative to issues impacting our community today.” Hopefully, you’ll find it obvious why I said that the story of the Starfish Thrower serves as an excellent metaphor here. We don’t expect that Here I Raise My Ebenezer will cause an immediate 180 degree turn in the devolution of our society but issue-by-issue, as the little girl in the story did starfish-by-starfish, we hope to bring healing to ills weakening our community’s foundation.
The role of our Writers is to speak up on these issues, to inform and to encourage constructive action. As Editor, on behalf of our Writers, I want to thank you for joining them here, to gain from their writing and to learn what you can do to end up being able to say, “Well, I made a difference to that one!”
Opposing Views of “Like-Minded” People on “Fair Marriage”
In the debate on legalizing “same-sex marriage”, I’ve encountered instances where, at least on the surface, it has appeared that “like-minded people” have differing views on the topic. Namely, these like-minded people are “People of Faith” and/or “Conservatives”. Here’s what I’ve found in my effort to gain a deeper understanding of these puzzling situations.
Differing Views Among Christians
These have been the cases I’ve found to be most surprising. For me, they’re exemplified by my ongoing dialog with a dear Catholic friend.
Since most would label me as an Evangelical Christian, of course, I have doctrinal differences with my Catholic friend. But, I’m confident that our beliefs match up on fundamentals, including the Holy Trinity and the infallibility of God’s Word. And, I’m just as certain that she is devout in her Catholic faith. Knowing these things and knowing that the Catholic Church’s position on this has been stated as “opposes gay marriage and the social acceptance of homosexuality and same-sex relationships”, I was bewildered when I noticed her making comments that seemed to imply her support for same-sex marriage, referring to it as “Fair Marriage”. With that, I started exploring the topic with her. Continue reading
Filed under Marriage
