Recently, Russia passed laws “banning the distribution of materials promoting homosexuality, pedophilia, and gender reassignment.”
In a speech, Chairman Vyacheslav Volodin said the law would help protect the motherland’s traditions and values for her children and the future of Russia from the “darkness spread by the United States and European states.”
But Russia is the bad guy, right? They got all kinds of problems. They’re mean and wicked and evil, right? They invaded Ukraine! Who cares what they think! Right?
For those who don’t know, “Body Count” in modern terms refers to how many sexual partners you’ve had in the past. Recently, I’ve seen a lot of videos pop up from men and women debating how important or unimportant this issue is, but I haven’t seen anyone provide the perspective I’m about to give…so here goes.
From the women, what I’ve heard is that a woman’s Body Count A) is a very private issue and nobody’s business. B) If a man asks, then it must mean he’s insecure and C) It shouldn’t be an issue because if men can sleep around, then women can too. Check out this video below to hear it from their own mouths. (this is one of many videos I’ve seen)
From the Man’s Perspective…years ago, I learned about the notion of “Pair Bonding.” Pair Bonding relates to the emotional attachment a person has to someone else, the ability to stay connected to this other person for a monogamous relationship. Keep in mind, these are just theories.
We’ve all heard the name, but I’m going to go deeper. The story of Jezebel is about a nation that’s lost its fear of God. It’s about those who think they can live without him. And it’s about the consequences that may not come over night, but make no mistake, it’s coming.
Allow me to begin by talking about the notion of “God fearing.” When I was a kid, I used to hear that all the time but I barely understood it. What kind of “loving” God wants us to fear him?
Well…consider every relationship you’ve ever been in. Consider why people lie when asked about an uncomfortable truth. I believe most people lie because they are afraid. They have a “fear” of hurting the ones they love and care about. Some are afraid of losing the relationships they have. Some are afraid of losing out on the benefits and opportunities of being associated with a person or organization.
That fear…I understand it. Because my fear of God is the fear of being abandoned by him.
Here’s some questions for you. Does God forgive Satan? Does Jesus Christ love Satan, just as he commanded us to love our enemies? These questions came to mind after a live debate I had with a woman at my gym.
The above were my immediate thoughts following a debate I had with an elderly woman (late 60s) at my gym. It wasn’t planned, but we struck it up and sat in the lobby to hash it out. I didn’t know much about her past prior to this conversation other than she claimed to be Christian. But she’s cool, a gym regular and past a certain age, so I’ve been able to have random chats with her without worrying about “making her feel uncomfortable”.
It began with her inquiring about my being a bachelor (a common topic of fascination). I gave her some details and she said, “Rock. Instead of looking for a wife, maybe you should look for a friend first? Just someone to get along with.”
I smiled and explained, “Yes ma’am. That’s the plan. When I say I’m looking for a wife, that’s just the end goal. It’s really my way of saying that I’m not part of today’s hook-up culture. A lot of my peers do want to get married, but first, they want to get laid. Whereas with me, marriage comes before sex.”
The obvious answer is “Yes.” As others have pointed out, “The gospel is quite clear that there is no distinction between the saved prostitute and the person who grew up in church.” (see Galations 3:28) And yet, if someone does have a problem with accepting them…I think it’s important to understand why. Let’s talk about it.
Very often, what I’ve observed from some Christians is essentially this sentiment of, “God accepts them, so shut up. It’s not your place to have an opinion on it one way or the other. You’re no better than they are, so don’t get cocky. Everybody’s a sinner! Everybody sins! We’re all the same! You’re nothing special.”
Here, at Stage in the Sky, we aim to explore those feelings and dig deep as to why anyone would harbor animosity towards the reformed Christians in the first place. Maybe then, we can get over it, let go, and come to accept them?
Sometimes when more scholarly Christians toss around words like “Redemption” or “Sanctification” it can be a bit difficult to comprehend or understand what that looks like or what it is. What’s so appealing about it? Why should I care?
Seriously…when I was a kid, my parents used to talk about the “kingdom of heaven.” Then, I looked around the church and thought to myself, “No, Thank You!” That’s because I couldn’t understand what the Kingdom of Heaven was. Back then, they made it seem like “heaven” was this place where there was nothing but a bunch of stiff, pious, monks and nuns who don’t really do anything interesting.
It’s like being back in Advanced Algebra. When I asked when I would ever need to use things like the Quadratic Formula in real life? The teacher didn’t have an answer. And since I saw no benefit, I wasn’t motivated to learn. I didn’t care about getting better beyond that which was required to pass the class because…what’s the point?
I think it’s the same with concepts like “Redemption” or “Sanctification”. Now, to be completely honest. I was prompted to write about Redemption and encouraged by another website called, SigmaFrame. You should check it out, because Jack’s an awesome intellectual and the comments sections are always full of thinkers I’ve come to have a tremendous amount of respect for.
But after much reflection and ample prayer…I asked myself, who do I want to reach? Who’s my audience? Other knowledgeable Christians who are already striving to do what’s good in God’s eyes? I don’t think so.
Instead, my aim has always been on those who call themselves Christians but don’t know what Christ taught. I also target the agnostics who are on the fence, and the Christians who are indifferent towards the Truth because of terrible experiences they may have had with Christianity. If my aim is to help the layman to “embrace” the truth, I believe we have to talk to them at their level. So here goes…
I wasn’t going to make a post about this video I recorded, but after reading one of the responses, I felt I had to dive deeper.
In the Caption, I say “I want to make it clear that I don’t speak for All Black People in this video…at the same time, I hate it when people who have the spotlight…THEY speak for all black people as if we all agree, as if we all feel the same. We don’t.”
As expected, there were a lot of people who saw the title of the video and just jumped to conclusions and posted comments without having actually watched the video. Which is alright. That seems to be the way of things. Not to mention, I think it brings a smirk to the faces of those who did watch the video and know I addressed a point the commenter was trying to make.
The whole point of me doing my videos, or writing my essays with a particular angle is to bring to light an opinion I haven’t seen presented on a greater scale. For instance, I didn’t post anything about the Will Smith slap for months because already I’ve seen it being covered. However, when it comes to the dreaded “N-word” and the controversy surrounding BYU and the Duke Volleyball player…I felt it was time to say something.
We need to talk about what’s happening between Black Men and Black Women. I’m noticing that there seems to be a growing rift between the genders, a great deal of resentment and hostility that’s getting out of control. But don’t worry, I have solutions!
The issues have been going on for years and it’s getting progressively worse. From the “Color Purple” to “What’s Love Got to Do with it” and even in the 2000s with Tyler Perry’s Madea films…it appears we black men are simply not acting right. We’re players. We’re dusty. We hump everything that moves. We’re not making 6 figures. We’re not keeping up with the education and professional careers of women. We shirk out on our responsibilities, making a whole bunch of babies and never sticking around to take care of them. We’re told to do better, do better, do better! And of course, one of the worst things black men do that provokes all kinds of ire…is date and marry women of another race.
I’m almost done with my third reading of 1 Samuel and I had to get my thoughts down about King Saul, the first King of Israel.
There’s so many lessons here that we can apply to our own lives, in today’s modern world. Mainly, the importance of patience and obeying God’s commandments even in the face of overwhelming pressure and anxiety.
Points Discussed: Modern-Day Christians Want God to Help Them Right Away? Why Some Humans Prefer Human Leadership over God’s Leadership – @1:20 Lack of Patience Under Intense Pressure – @3:48 Saul Failed with the Amalekites – @5:22 Obeying God’s Commandments is Better than Sacrifices – @7:18 If God Doesn’t Answer Your Prayers, Will You Reject God? – @8:32 Saul Relied on Mediums – @10:10
Stage In The Sky 