Racism

Well, I honestly don't know how each person will respond to this. This is one of those that you are free to disagree with me on, but please seek to understand me. Because of recent conversations, the details of which I will not share, this topic has been really working hard on me.

The questions I hope to answer are: What is racism? Why does racism exist? How does it evidence itself in a daily manner? Are you a racist? What is the solution to racism?

First things first, my goal is not to talk about one race as opposed to the another, simply to point out how we deal with the issues about race. I would even argue that there is no such thing as a 'different' race. We all are related if you go back far enough. There is only one race, the human race. But there is different cultures and those cultures do have an influence on us.

Also, this post should be applicable to whatever pigment of skin that you have and from whatever background you come from. Racism is not a skin color, it is heart problem.


What is racism?

According to the dictionary, racism is: : a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race.

I would like to take it a bit farther and possibly make it more clear. Racism is simply thinking that you are better or more deserving than someone else of a different color.


Why does racism exist?

Because of sin, mainly the sin of pride. Since sin entered the world it rears its ugly head in different ways. Looking back in history it is easy to see that the sin of racism has caused many evils in the world. We like to put ourselves on the throne and determine what is right and wrong instead of looking to the one who created us.

How has racism evidenced itself in the past?

Thinking about Hitler exterminating the Jews because he felt they were an inferior race is a perfect example of racism when carried to its natural outcome. Our own country has the terrible past of owning slaves as well. It was less than 50 years ago that blacks and whites didn't eat in the same restaurants, drink from the same water fountain or go to the same schools. I am obviously too young to have experienced those events, but there are many living today who have.

How does racism evidence itself now and are you a racist?

The Ku Klux Klan still exists in some areas. It's amazing that they have to hide cowardly behind hoods. Maybe you're not in the KKK, but I'd like to go deeper.
This is where it gets personal. If you were in a room and someone asked you to raise your hand if you are a racist would you raise your hand? Let me ask you some questions and see how you do?

1) Do you think of yourself better than someone of a different race?
2) When you checkout at a counter do you go to the person who has the same color skin as you, even if it's a little out of the way, do you avoid the employee at the counter that is of a different color or ethnic background, even if it's right in front of you?
3) When you walk into a building/classroom/restaurant, do you avoid an area because of the skin color or language spoken by those in a particular area?
4) When you are walking close to someone of a different different skin color or ethnic background do you reach for your pocketbook or wallet?
5) Would it offend you if your sister, brother, son, daughter, mom, dad, grandson, grand daughter or friend married and had children with or adopted someone of a different race?

If you answered yes to any of these questions then it's very possible that you are harboring some racism in your heart. The difference is in the degree that you carry it out. I think that with many people today they feel like they are ok as long as "they" (meaning the 'other' race) stay to themselves. That logic may work for a while, but not for long. It is mostly just an easy way to avoid the problem.

Jesus said that if you hate someone then you have committed murder in your heart. I believe this applies to a group of people as well. Are you guilty of murder?

What is the solution to racism?
If you're not offended/convicted yet, this might do it. The solution to racism is the cross of Christ. When you realize that you are utterly unworthy of acceptance before a Holy God, you will not look down on others, you will look up to God. The ground at the cross is level, there is no 'better' in God's eyes when he views the skin. We are all unworthy of Him and desperately need His Grace.

For those who profess Christ I have two more application questions:
1) If Jesus was a _______ man, would you still worship him, would anything change? (fill in the blank with an ethnic background/race different than you)
2) If you had to spend more time in heaven with someone of a different race than your own, would you still want to go?

It may look like I'm pointing the finger out to everyone else, but please be aware that I am also aware of what goes on in my heart as well. Most of the questions asked above have went through my head sometime in my lifetime. I'm ok with admitting it, repenting of it and seeking forgiveness in the cross.

I will end this with a personal story of a conversation with someone I had about 6 years ago. Again, the specifics of which ethnic group we talked about doesn't matter and they could be interchanged with another very easily. Let's say the guy's name was Barry:

Barry: "Kris, what do you think about these people marrying someone of a different race?"

me: "When you think about it Barry, we are really of the same race, the human race, we just look different, maybe listen to different music and dress a little different"

Barry: "Well I'm not racist or anything, but I just think that people should stick to their own kind, know what I mean?"

me: "I do too Barry, that's why people shouldn't be married to their cat or dog", smiling but understanding what he meant.

Barry: "Well doesn't the bible say it's wrong, something about not being unequally yoked?"

me: "Actually it's referring to a Christian and a non-Christian not being together, not different ethnic Backgrounds Barry. Let me ask you a question, you have a little girl right?"

Barry: "Yes, she's 2 years old"

me: "Ok, I'm going to give you two different options and you tell me which one you would prefer.

1) Your daughter is 19 years old and has a boyfriend who wants to marry her, he's white, drives a truck, listens to country music, and has a blue collar job. In other words, he's a lot like you. The problem is that this same guy verbally, mentally, and physically abuses your daughter.

2) Your daughter is 19 years old and has a boyfriend who wants to marry her, he treats her like a queen, takes her to church every Sunday, and promises to always treat her with respect and dignity. Oh and by the way, he's black.

Which situation would you prefer?"

Barry: "I don't know, I'll have to think about it"


That conversation actually happened. It was very sad. The person continues to think he's not a racist, what do you think?

I am very thankful that my kids are growing up in an age when everyone is free to sit in any seat on the bus, go to any restaurant they want, drink from any water fountain they want, and vote with their vote counting for a full person (not 3/5th of a person). With that being said there is still a lot of racism that goes on in the public arena and in private homes. There's a lot that goes on in the heart of a lot of people. I pray that both of my kids will view each person the same; someone made in the image of God, who has sinned against Him, and who needs God's mercy and grace.

Squanto and the Miracle of Thanksgiving

I'm not sure how knowledgeable you are about Thanksgiving. For some of you it may mean nothing more than turkey and football. For others it may mean getting together with family that you hardly ever see. For some it may mean thanking God for the gifts and blessings He's given you. I enjoy all of the above. I look forward to getting with both my side of the family and Stephanie's side to enjoy food and talk about what's been going on in our lives. We always have great food, and lots of it.

You probably know that the original Thanksgiving involved the "Pilgrims" and the "Indians", and sharing a feast, but you may not know the events that led up to this event. Ever heard of "Squanto"? Simply put, without Squanto there likely wouldn't have been a Thanksgiving. This CNN clip is an interview with a guy who wrote a children's book on Squanto. The book looks great.

I enjoyed this interview and hope you do as well.



It may seen appropriate to lift up Squanto for who he was and what he did, which is a good thing if done in the right way. I think a better approach is to thank God for what He did through Squanto. Squanto was a great man who accomplished a lot, but I believe it was because there was a great God who was working through him.

I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving!

Pop Tarts

Our family goes through more pop tarts than you can imagine. We currently have about 6 different boxes of pop tarts, however we've had many other flavors as well. Justin eats 2 for breakfast every morning and Katelyn likes them as well. They like them so much that they have had fights over them. Justin likes them so much that he's went as far as to hide his favorite flavor so that no one else eats them. Yes, Justin covets poptarts.

Here's a clip of Brian Regan on poptarts.

Silly Bands

I'm sure by now you know what Silly Bands are, but if not let me inform you: They are mainly bracelets, although there are rings now as well. They come in farm animals, dinosaurs, and musical instruments. You name it and there is probably silly bands for them. It's very popular in schools to collect and trade them. Now there's even a Christianized version of them called "faith bands". Leave it to someone to try and make a Christian imitation for a few bucks. Justin has some of them, why they are popular with middle school boys I have no idea, and Katelyn has many as well, I believe she's acquired most of Justin's. Now with that background in place, I can tell you what happened the other night.

Katelyn was told to not have silly bands at the table during dinner. After a few minutes she thought that didn't make any sense so she decided to play with them anyways. Well, this caused Stephanie to confiscate them, or try to... What happened next was complete pandomonium. Katelyn ran upstairs screaming "I want my silly bands, I want my silly bands". I'm sitting there thinking "this is going to be a long evening". We eventually get the silly bands from her and have a long talk about how she won't be getting them back soon. This was after her slamming the bedroom and closet door, which led to a spanking. She was crying so much over losing the silly bands that she almost threw up and her nose was running like crazy.

While talking with her, I told her that we love her very much. We wanted her to have 'things' to enjoy. We wanted her to be happy with her silly bands, but when it came time to be obedient to us, she needed to obey and put the bands away. I asked her if she knew she was getting into trouble by not putting them away, she said yes. She knew all along that she was getting into trouble and did it anyways (sounds a lot like you and me huh). Gradually throughout the evening she ended up eating her dinner, drawing some pictures and having a nice night.

The point of this post is not to talk about how sinful and evil my daughter is. My point is that I don't think that we are much different. Sure, it may not be silly bands, but there's other things that we don't want to give up. And while we may not scream out loud, cry and pout, that's exactly what's going on in our hearts. It's crying out "I want, I want, I want, I want". So the next time you really want something and don't get it or have something you think you can't live without, just think of silly bands. It may not last as long as Katelyn's episode with her silly bands, but it does happen, even for a split second sometimes. We act like kids only bigger and the silly bands change to __________. It may not be bad in and of itself and neither are silly bands, it's our hearts that's the problem.

We can either acknowledge that we really are this way and seek to know our hearts better, ask the Lord to show us our shortcomings, cry out for forgiveness through Christ, ask Him to change our hearts, or we can ignore it, pretending that it's only other people that are like that, or we can admit that we're that way, but think that we do so many other things that are good, that the good outweights the bad.

Which is your response?

by the way: Katelyn now has her silly bands back and she doesn't play with them at the table, at least she didn't last night. :)

Somebody did it

I think eating as a family is something that rarely occurs in most homes these days. Even when it does occur the tv is usually on distracting everyone from conversation.

Recently Stephanie noticed that there something on the floor around the table. Then we noticed that it was on the chair as well. What was it?: Parmasean Cheese. Usually food on the floor isn't a problem, we simply call Daisy, our beloved Jack Russell Terrior and she takes care of it, she left the parasean cheese though. We had this discussion at the dinner table over it, more or less:

Stephanie: "What's on the floor?
me: "It's also on the seat"
Stephanie: "It's parmasean cheese, who did this?"
Katelyn: "somebody did it"
Stephanie: "do you know who this somebody is?"
Katelyn: "no, but somebody did it"
Justin: not saying anything, just laughing!

After several moments passed:

Katelyn: "well, when I shook it, the lid wasn't on good"

Yes, "somebody" did do it, and that same "somebody" helped to clean it up!

When we uploaded this picture we thought "I didn't eat the brownie"

It was from a fudge pop.

Isn't it amazing how we don't want to admit what we've done. Katelyn's not alone here. We all want to shift the blame. She got it from her mom and myself, who got it from our parents, who you guessed it, got it from their parents. Our orginal parents Adam and Eve didn't want to admit it either. Adam blamed Eve, Eve blamed Satan. The fact is "we did it". The question remains: "Will we admit it?"

Slavery and Abortion

Well, like I said in an earlier post, some posts will be funny and some will be serious. This post is a serious post. As many of you know, one of my passions is protecting the life of the unborn, those who cannot protect themselves. I've read about different perspectives before, but none like this. This fictional address is by Pastor Thabiti Anyabwile. He gives, as a black man, what he would say as a white man to a black audience on the issue of Slavery and Abortion. Regardless of how you feel on the subject of abortion, please read this. You may not agree with me, and you may not agree with Thabiti, but at least read and think about what he's saying.


Ladies and Gentlemen,

Thank you for coming out tonight. I’m deeply grateful that you would invest time away from your family, your work, and other commitments to be with us for so important an issue. I want to talk with you about what I believe is the most heinous, life-threatening tragedy in our lifetimes: abortion.

When you mention the word “abortion,” some people quickly tune you out. They think of sign-carrying protesters… or graphic images of unborn children. And whether because they’re squeamish at the sight of some images, or because they’ve become numb to the so-called “culture wars,” or because they honestly value choice in this issue, significant groups of Americans seem blind to the suffering, pain, and death caused by abortion.

The closest example I can think of would be the two hundred years of willful ignorance this society demonstrated as millions of African people were kidnapped, packed in ships, then sold and brutalized in the Transatlantic slave trade. We have no idea how many people were killed at sea during that demonic voyage. We have no idea how many were born into slavery… who lived their entire lives without even the hope of freedom. We have no idea how many were beaten to death… lynched… castrated… or hobbled. We cannot imagine the number of “quiet” deaths on plantations suffered by those whose enslavement lasted longer their hearts. We can’t count the screams of mothers separated from their children at the auction block or even at birth. While black women suckled the children of slave owners… their own children were sold like cattle. We can’t endure imagining the debilitating effects of being repeatedly raped, having children by men who denied your humanity by day but claimed your bed by night, of knowing you had no control over your body. Who can count the number of restless, dreamless nights forcibly separated husbands and wives spent wondering about the other.

In our short time tonight, we cannot begin to detail the horrors and the torments of slavery. We can’t even adequately describe how those horrors still live with us. I don’t want in any way to presume I know what it was like. And I certainly don’t want to minimize the memory of such suffering. The experience wasn’t cheap. It was costly. We’re still paying the costs in so many ways.

And, I’m well aware that people who look like me were the ones sailing the ships, leading the auctions, and holding the whip. Some people who claimed to be Christians, as I am, either actively participated in and justified this brutality, or many of them quietly looked the other way. They were willfully ignorant. And they remind me of how easy it is for me to be ignorant, and how wrong it would be for me to borrow the suffering and pain of slaves without trying to enter into it. For after all, my Savior took my pain and suffering on Calvary’s cross that I might be free from sin and guilt to enjoy the Father’s love. I don’t want to betray the memory of African slaves, or betray the memory of Calvary’s cross.

But there were also those who looked like me and who looked like you who were liberators and defenders of black life. They were the resistant, the militant, and the strident. They spoke up and they spoke out. They sometimes led protests and wrote abolitionist tracts. They sometimes simply looked into themselves before looking into the eyes of the slave driver and saying, “I am a man.” Or, “I am a woman.” ”I ain’t taking it no more.” There were black Frederick Douglasses and white William Wilberforces, whose actions touched both sides of the Atlantic. There were black David Walkers and white John Browns, who made a call to arms to protect black life. And there were black Harriet Tubmans and nameless white women along the Underground Railroad getting their passengers to freedom by night.

Here’s what I would ask: Would you consider me one of those working in the spirit of black men and women, and white men and women, who gave their lives in the cause of life and liberty?

Because the reality is this: There is among us another form of willful ignorance destroying life by the thousands every day. There is another “looking the other way” by Americans who know better and should be better. There are significant numbers of people professing to be Christians either participating in, supporting, or playing blind bystander to untold human suffering. These are the people living in our day who remain uninvolved in ending abortion the way some remained uninvolved in ending slavery.

Were a black man to remain uninvolved in ending slavery he would be called a “sell out.” Were a white man to be uninvolved in ending slavery he would be worst than the slave owner. And my brothers and sisters, if a black man or woman remains uninvolved in the ending of abortion when abortion destroys more black babies than any other thing since slavery… that black man or woman is a “sell out” to his children before they see the light of life! And if a white man or woman remains uninvolved in ending abortion… that white man or woman takes their place on the side of slave owners and slave merchants who were destroyers of life!

Ignoring suffering wasn’t right in 1830, and it’s not right in 2010. Black life should have been valued and protected in 1830 and 1950, and it should be valued and protected now!

I’m not here to tell you what you must do. I’m not here as some white savior from outside. I’m here as someone who needs your help. I’m here as someone making a plea on behalf of those who can’t speak. I’m here in quest for a future where all life–black, white, Asian, Hispanic–all life–receives the honor, dignity, care, and preservation befitting the image of God. For all people are made in God’s image. All people are made by God to reveal His glory. We dare not hide or tarnish the glory of God. So we dare not murder those made in His image.

There will be an account to give before God on that Great Day of Judgment. I want to be counted among those who fought for His glory and fought for life.

How about you? Will you join with me in making sure life is protected? Will you join with me in making sure the suffering of bygone generations of African Americans isn’t for nothing when it comes to this generation of babies in their mother’s wombs? Will you join with me in removing the scalpel from the doctors’ hands the way the whip should’ve been removed from the slave owners’ hands? Will you join with me in putting an end to abortion in America? Right now, a real baby in a real womb needs us to give our lives so that they may have one.

Thank you for your time.

I hope you were as impacted by what Thabiti said as I was. I am going to give you a few questions that I asked myself and will ask you to reflect on them as well.

1) How do you feel about slavery? If you are a white person, do you think that you understand what the slaves went through (or can understand)? If you are a black person, do you think white people understand what they went through (or try to)? Was slavery right then? Is it right now? Do you think it's possible to remain neutral on slavery? How would you of responded to slavery if you had lived in that time period?

2) How do you feel about abortion? Do you think the comparison to slavery is a valid one? Do you think abortion is a moral issue? Do you think it's possible to remain neutral on abortion? Do you think that abortion demands a response? Are you responding to the issue of abortion today, if so what impact are you making? If you are not responding, why?

These questions are not given so that you will respond to each one by writing comments, although please feel free to do so if you want. They are mainly things I thought about after reading the talk from Thabiti and realizing that we simply don't think about these types of things enough.

Growing up

Remember shy, timid, and bashful Justin. Well, he's not so much anymore. He has come out of his shell some. Actually he has come out of his shirt as well. :)

I have heard that having a teenager is challenging. That life will be a mess, full of stress, constant arguments and the like. Well, I'm not going to say that there aren't challenges and disagreements at times. Yes, we still have to tell him to go to bed, yes, we still have to tell him to put his clothes away, and yes, we still have to tell him to take a shower. But, overall though, it's pretty great having a teenager in the house. We've seen Justin grow up a lot this year, especially since we've changed school systems this past year. He has had to step out more. Not only has he grown up emotionally, he has grown in inches. We went shopping for pants the other day, because he only has 1 pair that fit. If his pants fit around the waist then they are way to short. He really needs a 30-34, but they are very hard to find. He also eats everything in the house so our grocery bill has gone up quite a bit in the past year.

The picture above is from a Jefferson High School Dragons home game. Can you imagine him doing this 5 years ago? No way!

At his school they have a spirit week. This picture is from nerd day.


If the glasses look familiar it's because they are mine from basic training, called by the Army, BCG's (basic combat glasses), but by soldiers they are called birth control glasses, for obvious reasons.

This year he played football for the middle school and has recently made the basketball team as well. His grades are great, even while being in a few honors classes.

I guess you could say he's adjusted to the new school pretty well. As far as us adjusting to having a teenage son; we're doing good as well, it's a work in progress. :)

I love these verses from Psalm 127

Psalm 127:3-5
Sons are a heritage from the LORD,
children a reward from him.

Like arrows in the hands of a warrior
are sons born in one's youth.

Blessed is the man
whose quiver is full of them

I am blessed to have Justin as my son. And speaking of a warrior, the first picture does kinda look like war paint.

Football and love

I love Football. I do. I love watching football. I love throwing football. I even love talking about football. From middle school and high school, through college and pro, I love football. There is a different atmosphere in Athens (UGA)during the fall. It's not because the leaves are changing, it's because it's football season.

At this point, you may be asking....okay, so what's the big deal? Is there anything wrong with football? No. Again, so what's the big deal? Well, sometimes we love things too much. A well-known pastor has said that when we make good things into God things it's a bad thing. I know, deep insight right? But simple as it sounds, it has profound implications. You see, when I allow my life to be consumed by anything, whether it is football, hunting, racing, tv, books, movies, music, internet, another person, or _______, I turn that thing into an idol and I worship it. Am I saying that we should isolate ourselves in the mountains somewhere and not have any contact with the world? Not at all. An old theologian has said that our hearts are idol factories. If you get rid of one idol, our heart will make another, even in isolation in the mountains.

So what am I saying?

I'm saying that we should be careful of the things in our lives that compete with our heart. The world is pulling us in different directions whether we believe it or not. We are not neutral. There's a reason why we buy certain products, they have been sold to us before we even buy them. TV, radio, newspaper and even other people can affect us in ways we do not realize. Think of the last few things you bought from a store and the last few things you watched on tv. Why did you buy/watch them?

(As a side note this is something that Justin and I talked about: every time I hear Mexican music on the radio I want chips and salsa...I'm just sayin...)

Now back to football. There are many who spend their time and money on football. They will spend a substantial amount of money on clothing and tickets and spend most of an entire day to watch 18-22 year old kids run around on grass. They will have their heart beating 100 mph waiting on a last second play to win the game. They will cry over a win or a loss of their favorite team. How do I know this? Because I am one of them. There's nothing inherently wrong with spending a day at the stadium or a whole season at the stadium for that matter. But if those actions control and compel your life and if your week is either great or horrible based on how some kids play, your love is misplaced.

So, yes, I love football. I wish the Georgia Bulldogs had a better team. I wish the Miami Dolphins still had Dan Marino at quarterback. I still will watch football on tv and in person, but after all is said and done... it's just football.

Now there's four different ways you can look at this.

1)Yep, that's me, you just described it perfectly.

2)Oh, I know those guys, they are bad guys, shame on them, I'm glad I'm not like that.

3)It's their money and time, let them do what they want, who am I to judge.

4)That's not me, allowing football to affect my life that much, but I wonder if I do the same thing in a different area of my life?

The question is not "do I love something or someone", but "who/what do I love".