Hello all! Hope everyone is having a wonderful start to March, a nice month I might say. One in which we can all take time to honor the Irish and St. Patrick’s Day! Although the Irish have never really done nothing other than be a thorn in the side of the English (their rightful Lords) and eat too many potatoes, we should still honor them! So this month is for you- BrYce Cooper, you pail, freckled, Irishman! (See if I ever care what you say about this blog!!)

All joking aside, I really don’t have much to say other than two things that have come across my mind lately: The Boss (no surprise there!) and Charles Colson.

This was a nice, little thing that Newsweek did on the former Nixon counselor with regards to this 2008 Presidential election and the role of Christians. I really found the conversation concerning Christians defending their beliefs against a secular world more interesting. This was really neat for me to read and anyone who might know even a little something about Chuck Colson. To keep it short, he has the honor of being remembered as one of the cronies of President Nixon. There is a great line by Woodward and Bernstein in the film All the President’s Men about Mr. Colson: “The most powerful man in the United States is President Nixon. You’ve heard of him? Charles Colson is special counsel to the President. There’s a cartoon on his wall. The caption reads, “When you’ve got ‘em by the balls, their hearts and minds will follow.” I know this might seem inappropriate to some, but honestly, we’re discussing a sick, evil man who worked with a horrible man to destroy the Constitution of the United States. Colson was a bad dude, if you get my drift. But instead of his reputation ending with Watergate, he gave his life to the Lord, and since has become a respected man once again. He is a wonderful example of the power the Lord yields.

One other thing that I have been pondering lately is this thought of going to the Bruce Springsteen concert (as of this moment, 19 days) soon! Really though, something that has really consumed me is the thought of worship before the Lord. Now, I do not believe that there is a set, standard way to worship in song. I do think about how we act at certain venues and events compared to church. I’m sure all of you have been preached at about this, or thought of it or even been convicted because of it, but it really has gotten under my skin. I really opened my heart and had to ask the question-”why don’t I sometimes get excited for Worship as I would if I were to see the Boss. Why do we all go nuts and cheer at ball games and only limit that passionate worship for “special events” such as a Passion Conference?

Springsteen is an awesome artist and performer (there is a difference, ask John Wiley and Colby and Chandler- D.C. 05′ BABY!!!) but what did he ever do for me? Christ died my soul to save and so many times all I can do is just look at a screen and keep my hands in my pocket! I really have a strong desire to ask God for a heart and soul that explodes for His love and the opportunity to worship Him!! I really do not care about this situation in just how it looks to other people, we aren’t to care about what others are doing or thinking or how they are acting during worship, our focus should be on the Lord.

On March 22, 2008, if the Lord wills it, I will see one of my all-time favorite artist, LIVE, and my focus will be on him and the E Street Band! It is my desire though that the Lord would become my true focus everyday in every little and great thing I do for Him! Get excited people, remember- Out of Zions Hill SALVATION COMES!!!! That’s a top-40 I’ll never get tired of hearing! Much love!

Also, in five of the major categories for the Academy Awards (Best Pic, Dir, Lead Actor, Sup Actor, Screen play) I was correct in all my predictions!! I was extremely pleased with Daniel Day Lewis in There Will Be Blood, but there was never any doubt that No Country For Old Men would sweep!! If you have not seen either of these great films, please do so!!

I would like to thank Pastor Woody, a great mentor of mine, for his fine leadership in “linking”!!!

After a week, I feel like I have had some time to better formulate some political ideas that I have recently posted. To answers Mr. Tapp’s question- I really had to think hard one that one. I do believe it has to be some type of combination of the two. Keith is right, the sole answer is the Gospel. That should be the focus. Keith also used a great truth, people are sick. It is the sick people that need help, that need a cure. That cure is the Gospel!

Because people are sick, are entire world is. Business, political, financial, and even our entertainment industries are sick and are in need of the one and only true cure: Christ! We see this all the time in politics too. Gambling in Kentucky is a great example. The Commonwealth is in desperate need of funding and our economies are slowing down somewhat. There are some in government and other industries which are involved in public policy that look to expanded gaming to “cure” this problem, or if you will, “sickness”. As citizens we want easy, quick solutions to hard, complicated problems. Either we raise our taxes, or we regulate, or deregulate or reduce government funding and/or programs. Usually though we like to have our cake and eat it too!

I simply do not want Christians to think about one or two issues and begin to believe that only those issues effect the family. I am so gracious that my God would allow me to join with my fellow believers in praying together for our state over the issue of gambling. Why don’t why prayer over other issues though. Health-care, funding education, infrastructure, or a living wage? All of these issues effect the family, anyone of these issues can be skewed because of our fall and sin. The last thing I would want to see are Christians voting Republican or for a conservative candidate because they might (maybe- maybe not, only that candidate knows what they really think and believe in their heart and mind) right according to the scriptures on one or two issues and at the same time, they might be wrong on the other five or six!! I know Evangelicals have distanced themselves from those of the “social gospel” over the last century, but I believe we can somewhat embrace their causes without diminishing the Gospel of Truth. Churches might have to start thinking of how they can do a better job of practicing public policy within their communities and not just simply calling for change or preserving policy.

So, what do you guys think? Should Christians leave the Republican or Democratic Parties? How should Christians vote with concern to economic matters? Of course these answers should be found in the Word, so does anyone have an passages they would like to use to contribute to this discussion? What are some thoughts concerning the pic above? I am not a smart guy, I really don’t know all that much about politics or history, I just learn by reading and listening, so- help me learn!!

Love you guys!

Before I begin, I would like to note a few things:

• I want to always keep my thoughts and attitudes concerning anything, event, topic or person within the context and standard of the Holy Scriptures. If, at any moment, I write anything that seems to contradict God’s Word, please let me know (in a loving way …)
• These are my thoughts, they are subject to change
• It is my hope that regardless of how I think, you will begin to have thoughts as well, and remember, your opinions can change just as well.

With that said……. I really hate myself when I use generalizations! I do not like it when people, mainly myself, use stereotypes and generalize people or issues. I will admit, I am not a smart guy, so with many things in my life I desire to simplify anything and everything I can. Yet there are many times in which there just are not simply answers or solutions. Christians voting in the United States is what I am really getting at here.

For too long I feel that evangelicals and social-conservative Christians have tried to create and accept and justify political interest and involvement on the basis of two or three different issues or topics.  In recent memory, for example, Gay Marriage, Abortion and the continuing debate over Church-State relations (the placing of the Ten Commandments on government property) come to mind as issues that “rally” the evangelicals to the voting booths.

As Christians we cannot keep living with the mindset that we must vote to prevent or preserve something. As voters, and especially as Believers, we have the power and ability to vote for change, progress and create something better.  If Christ came that we might have life and have it more abundantly, why not allow the political realm to be seen in that Biblical mindset?

Just because a person or group wishes to engage our culture, government and society with a secular agenda and ideology, does not mean at that very moment we come out and vote to prevent that from occurring. We have the right, power and responsibility to force unbelievers to do that! Put them and the secular agenda on the defensive! We cannot keep running buses of senior citizens from our Churches up to state capitals to promote or speak out against some issue. Pastor Kenneth Bruce preached last night at Ignite UK, a church on UK’s campus, and God said something through him that really caught my ear. Do all things as if to the Lord-right, we’ve all heard that before. Well, as a Believer, not only should we be the best students, or workers because we represent Christ, we should be the best citizens and voters also! 

  I really have a desire to change that way I perceive the reality that surrounds me. (Please follow me here, it’s kinda my main point!) I have never thought of my role as a voter who is a Believer in the terms I will write here: The world is lost. The world is dying and does not want Christ. Satan has been winning too many battles and will keep winning more and more. As people, Americans- who happen to vote, become more and more secular, so will our governments. As believers we must respond! We must begin to think of how we can (IN A BIBLICAL MANNER!!!) combat Satan via politics. If our governments are becoming more and more hostile to the Church then we as the Church are to reconsider our role in society.

Please note: I believe that the Church’s priority should be the glorifying of Christ, fulfilling the Great Commission, honoring God, and devoting ourselves to prayer, worship and the preaching of the TRUTH-that is the Word of God!! What I am focusing on is, for example, how a country as blessed as the United States can be affected by a Church that desires to share the love of Christ and to love everyone as they love themselves. A few weeks ago, Dr. Henard spoke on gambling. He said something to the effect of “and if gambling becomes a problem then the Church is going to have to pay to support and reach people effected by this (gambling) and that could take away from efforts to share the Gospel.

My belief is that we as Christians should be becoming more appalled at our society and angry at Satan’s hold over people. If we know that governments are not going to be more accepting of the Gospel, then we must take it on ourselves to meet peoples needs. In other words, if we have moral objections over how the government does this or does that, or what the government should or shouldn’t fund, then we need to say “we have been blessed by God, we want to share the love of Christ with others- in a BIBLICAL manner, we’ll tend to the poor, we’ll push for better education, we’ll provide health-care coverage.”

I do not want Christians to generalize politics. Al Gore might be wrong on many issues according to the Scriptures, but his stance on the environment should not be used against him. To say global warming exist doest not mean that that person also contradicts Genesis when God gives man dominion and rule over the Earth. Earth is God’s beautiful creation, and we should respect it and do what we can to preserve it. Man is also God’s beautiful creation, which is why human rights are an important issue for Believers to pay attention too, for example Darfur.

Love your neighbor as yourself-well folks, I’ll be honest- I love myself. I would hope that people would want to share the love of Christ with me by helping me if I were in a hard economic position, when education is being debated and when they stopped and proclaimed the Gospel to me!  Placing the Ten Commandments in courthouses will not make this a Christian nation! The New Covenant has a desire to be placed and met in our hearts.  As Christians we must stop worrying over three or four issues every three or four years. We must see the bigger picture- God must be glorified in everything that we do, and that does not necessarily mean when or if we vote “Republican”.  We must stop thinking in terms of “our tax dollars”- because, just like with our tithes, our paychecks and our taxes or our tax rebates are all the Lords!

This was a long post, I am sorry. I know I lost John Wiley back at the 3rd paragraph! There are many different avenues that this post and discussion could have and will most likely take. Maybe I didn’t explain myself as best I could have, I myself am probably now guilty of using generalizations! After all this might have sounded somewhat better if it had been an actual conversation, plus my horrible grammar and spelling would not have played a role! I hope everyone can relate or develop a thought or two concerning this. Sorry again it was so long. Love you guys!

Ps. Justin, nice job. I owe you a cookie my brother!

It must be noted that the Evangelical voting bloc in this country is shrinking. Yes, the Republican Party might still be under a conservative majority, but evangelicals no longer have the political power they once knew two decades ago with groups such as the Moral Majority for example. With that said, and shrinking evangelical voting bloc in a shrinking Republican Party is a nightmare for evangelical and social conservatives voters.

Religion aside, the Republican Party needs to think long and hard about how they can grow and gain support from American in the present. I say this because of one problem: Ronald Reagan. YES, that’s right. I, Hagan York, said Ronald Reagan was a “problem”. The Republican Party is so hungry for greatness from it’s leadership that the central question everyone always asks is: WWRD? What Would Reagan Do. Let me tell you what Reagan would do: NOTHING! Why, you ask. Because he is dead and has been for almost four years! The question Republicans should be asking is, “what are YOU as a potential leader NOW going to do about x, y, or z!?”

I heard Laura Ingraham today say that John McCain is not a conservative and that the Republicans need to “go back to their roots” and “McCain cannot do that for us.” NEWS FLASH LADY- Ol’ George W. has not done that either! People want to talk about Conservatism? (Conservatism….Conservatism, you wanta talk about Conservatism…Conservatism) Conservatism is not:

1. Expanding the Federal government
2. Creating more government bureaucracy
3. Increasing government spending
4. Nation-building foreign policy
5. Providing Communists China with more American debt

These are some of the non-conservative Conservative policy I have come to expect from the Republicans this past decade. We cannot just speak the name Lincoln, Cleveland, Roosevelt (TR), Coolidge, or Reagan and just think on election night every state will turn red, the country will be safe and that white, Anglo, male power will defeat all evil known on this planet. Americans, Republicans and Evangelicals must take a refreshing look at the world, the issues facing it, and how the secular realm wishes to address those situations. My next post will deal with how evangelicals view the political process in the United States and how they use it has a great effect on the political and socioeconomic course of this country.

P.S.- Free cookie for whoever names the guy in the pic

I myself watched the ceremony last night because many of my favorite musical artists were all up for awards: The Beatles, The Eagles, Bruce Springsteen, Eric Clapton and Paul McCartney. I was disappointed that McCartney lost to Justin Timberlake but whatever. Sir Paul did fine though, winning (as one of the Fab Four) another Grammy to add to his collection. The Eagles won for Best Country Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals for their song How Long. This one a great album (not on itunes, sorry!) that the band worked on for years (20 if you think about it..) and they are back to together and enjoying making music once again-great! Eric Clapton got a nod for his work with Jazz, which has been a great blessing for fans to be able to witness the continuing greatness of Clapton’s artistic abilities!!

Last and not least, my man, the Boss, won BIG last night!!!!! I was saddened  that he did not win Best Rock Album (Foo Fighters got it…..Foo Fighters…..more like Poo Fighters…..). He did win for Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance, Best Rock Instrumental Performance, and Best Rock Song! I am excited, not only because I love the Boss and his music, but also because I have loved his latest album, Radio Nowhere since I bought it late last summer. Springsteen has said that the songs he wrote for this album were “meant to be played on stage, live for my fans.” I agree, which is why I now have tickets to see him play in Cinncy this spring!!!!! There is no doubt in my mind that not only is Springsteen one of the greatest musicians of the past two generations, but one of the greatest poets of the latter half of the twentieth century.

I would also like to note that I enjoyed the awards show overall for one simple reason, with the Oscars in the air and other awards shows cancelled due to the lingering Writers Guild strike, it was refreshing to be entertained by great performers and artist live for the first time in months!