Why do we kill people who kill people to show people that killing people is wrong?

This one is a mouthful, or more accurately a heartful. I have been on both sides of this issue but the longer I live the more I believe capital punishment is wrong. I know many of you will be emailing me scripture which supports the state using death as a punishment. I'll not deny it.

What I have always had trouble walking away from is one particular instance where the death penalty was averted in the scripture. Jesus never told the Jews that the laws of Moses were not to be followed. But on one occasion He was involved in stopping an execution. In John 8 there is the situation where a woman caught in the act of adultery was brought forth to be stoned. Is it just me or has anyone else wondered where her partner in crime was? According to the law they both should have been stoned to death. Christ does not tell the Pharisees they are wrong to want to stone her, he just asks that only those who have not sinned should mete out the punishment. Rather than answer His challenge they walk away. When He finally speaks to the woman He asks her who condemns her. She replies that no one does. Christs tells her "Neither do I, go on your own way and from now on don't sin."

For me it's a case of actions speaking louder than words. No matter how you interpret any of the scriptures reasoning for the use of capital punishment, I can't forget Christ's example. There were so many areas where He might have gotten involved in social reform, He did not speak out against slavery. He didn't call for rebellion against the Romans. He did not protest the heavy handedness of the Pharisees. He did not even speak out against the very issue of capital punishment. Why then would he bring about a stay of this woman's execution?

I don't know why? All I know is that for me the issue is simple, capital punishments solves nothing. A chance for redemption for the criminal is stolen. A chance for the victim to forgive is taken. In the analysis of crime statistics no one can agree that capital punishment has any impact on dissuading others. I live in a state where the majority of the executions in this country take place. Here in Texas you can have been a child when you committed the crime and the state will wait until you reach adulthood to kill you. You can be mentally challenged and not fully understand what you have done and still be killed for it. You can find redemption, and still be killed.

For me the answer is this, my Savior stopped a crowd from killing a woman for a crime she had committed. I can do no less. I am and will continue to be fully Pro-life, not just "innocent" life, but all life. From before the cradle to the grave I will work to save lives.

This is not an easy stand, most of the people I go to church with do not agree with me, a good deal of my friends believe me to be wrong, and the majority of my family disagree as well. I cannot let that keep me from what I believe to be right. So think about where you stand on the important decisions in life and do what you feel called to do. To do less is as good as doing nothing at all.

Pro-life for life,

jené

Knock, Knock...Who's there?

So today we will delve into the world of Knock, knock jokes. When I saw this one on a flair I had to have it

Knock, knock.
Who's there?
You know.
You Know Who?
Yes! Avada Kedavra

You won't get it if you aren't a Harry Potter Fan. I have spent a lot of time over the years with children and it is always a treat when they finally understand the knock knock joke is a funny because of word play. When they are four or five, they just answer with any funny sounding word and will giggle uncontrollably. I thought I would share with you some of my favorites.

Knock, knock.
Who's there?
Delores.
Delores who?
Delores my shepherd...

Knock, knock.
Who's there?
Adore.
Adore who?
Adore stands between us, open it up!

Knock, knock.
Who's there?
Butch, Jimmy and Joe.
Butch, Jimmy and Joe who?
Butch your arms around me, Jimmy a little kiss, and let's Joe places.

Knock, knock.
Who's there?
General Lee.
General Lee who?
General Lee I do not tell jokes.

Knock, knock.
Who's there?
I-8.
I-8 who?
I-8 lunch already, what's for dinner?

Knock, knock.
Who's there?
Despair.
Despair who?
Despair tire is flat.

Knock, knock.
Who's there?
Icon.
Icon who?
Icon tell you another knock, knock joke if you want.

Hope you found something to give you a chuckle.

jené

TGIF

It's not what you think it is, on this flair TGIF stands for "Thank God I'm Forgiven". That has been on my mind today. It's a day off and I am grateful as I am a bit under the weather. I headed back to bed this morning after breakfast to rest and couldn't sleep so I ended up spending the time in prayer. I had one friend in particular on my mind. She seems to go from tragedy to tragedy always reacting with feelings of doom and gloom. Most of the difficulties she encounters are not things she should devote her time to bemoaning. I think she just truly does not know how to live without some sort of drama occurring in her life.

When we talked last week she shared she just did not know what was happening to her lately as she cannot seem to find any peace. I asked her how her prayer life was and she admitted to having let go of regular time with the Lord. I told her I would not be able to get out of bed in the morning if I did not spend some time alone with God. I told her I need to have his help and forgiveness to be able to make it through the day. I have had some rather unique days of late. My goal is to always remember that God only allows things to happen to me that will in some way work for my good. I will confess it often takes a bit of prayer to get my heart right and I am thankful that God forgives my lapses. When I told this to my friend she was not at a point to be receptive. I am hopeful sharing my inadequacies will help her to see that everyone needs God's help. He calls me to follow Him but does not expect me to be able to do it all on my own. He is ready to give me whatever help I need if I just ask for it.

So today and every day I Thank God I am Forgiven,

jené

You can't ground me

A Canadian Judge told a father today that he cannot ground his daughter for breaking house rules. Apparently the little delinquent was upset she could not take a school trip after her father found she had posted inappropriate pictures of herself on-line using a friend's computer. She was restricted from the Internet at the time. She has a history of being unable to follow her father's rules.

Here's hoping Justice Suzanne Tessier doesn't have children herself. They might find themselves standing in court one day. I am guessing the little one she freed from Daddy's punishment today will be back in court later in her life for something more severe. All of us needed boundaries as we were growing up. Learning to respect those helped to teach us when they needed to be crossed over. Some boundaries are meant to be abolished. Many times society is led through change by those with the wisdom to see where change is needed.

I don't believe a little tart trying to worm her way out of a reasonable reaction to rule breaking is a good example. More shameful is the Judge who encourages this behavior and rewards her for doing something so potentially dangerous. Is she the only woman alive who doesn't understand that the Internet can be a tool for perverts to get their hands on children?

Glad I am not a parent in Canada tonight,

jené

National Recess at Work Day

According to my silly days calendar today is a day to take a recess at work. As this is my day off I am embracing the concept of recess completely and doing as little work as possible around the house. I will have to head out in a bit to run a couple of errands and if laundry is not done later there will be no jeans to wear to work tomorrow. While my job has a generously casual dress code, I think they would frown on the lack of lower attire.

All that aside, I am having a grand do nothing day!

-jené

Think On

This is the title of a piece of Flair I designed myself. It is the on the crest of the Clan MacLellan. While thinking on is always good advice, it's beginnings as a family crest were to remind a King of his promise. There was a bandit who was terrorizing the area and the King promised a Barony to whomever could rid the countryside of this man. William MacLellan fought and killed the "Black Morrow" and took his head on the end of his sword to the King. When the King seemed to have forgotten the reward promised, MacLellan urged him to think on.

The MacLellan clan prior to this had been in Ireland regrouping from defeat in Scotland. Returning home to the Barony of Bomby kept the family out of trouble for a while. It seems the clan suffered many setbacks over the years but never failed to thrive. You can find descendants here in the USA, in Canada, and in Australia in large quantities.

A cousin has made the news of late with his book on the Bush administration. I have only read excerpts and have not read it in it's entirety but plan to do so. I do not know what compelled
him to write this book but maybe it all goes back to the family Motto to "Think On". I hope that his intent was to reflect on things that happened and give a better understanding to the same.

Still thinking,

jené

I am ready to face any challenges that might be foolish enough to face me

Over on Facebook I have a flair board with each piece chosen for their meaning in my life. I was thinking the other day that many were worthy of blogging. So that's what I am going to do. Hence the abnormally long title for this post.

I chose this one for the first offering because I had a new challenge face me this week. On Wednesday my knee gave out while I was in the shower and I bruised myself pretty well. So Thursday had a consult with my physical therapist as the highlight. She had mentioned last month that it might be time for me to consider using a cane to give myself a little help and relief. She knows my working days are spent entirely upon my feet. After our session she asked me if I had thought further about using a cane. I told her I had been considering it but had been hesitant to committing myself to it as it seemed to be giving in. She told me I was going to have to let go of my pride and do what was best for me. Frankly after the tumble on Wednesday I was closer to making that decision than I had ever been.

I left my therapy and headed to my doctor's house to drop off something for his father's birthday. He is my friend as well as physician, When I spoke with him about her suggestions regarding acquiring a cane for some assistance he said to do whatever would help me.

Friday I went to work and even with a long lunch hour to see my mom being honored at a Republican Women's luncheon, I was wiped out. Saturday I took my new cane to work with me and found I made it through the day a little better than I had all week.

Looks like I'll be keeping the cane and using it for all the help it can give me. It was hard to accept but I hope I can remember to see that every challenge gives me at least two options. I can do nothing or I can choose to see how I can do better.

Choosing to do better,

jené

Hope 2008

Several friends in Great Britain are excited about the opportunities they have had in working with Hope 2008. This poem particularly affected my friend Winnie. She said it made her think of how little of Christ's work she was doing. I often feel that I am not doing enough to help those around me so I know where her heart is. The important thing is to do what you can.

The mail I am getting from friends taking part encourages me. It's not just that they are taking their faith into the everyday, it's exciting to see so many churches let go of their denominational pride and differences to come to work together. Wish America was ready for that kind of cooperation.

Hoping here,

jené

Tristan und Isolde

Today is the anniversary of the first performance of Wagner's Tristan und Isolde. You may be wondering why I would take the time to tell you this so let me share with you a story.

Once upon a time there was a young girl who was bored in math class. She couldn't see how math was ever to be useful in her life and it didn't relate much to the things she loved. She never saw the equation the way her teachers wanted her to. She would ponder the problem and then come up with the answer. When her teachers asked her to explain her work or use theory to prove her reasoning she never could. To her math was intuitive and she didn't understand what they were wanting her to see. Consequently math classes became a thing to dread. She knew at the start of each school year that sometime early on she was going to be a disappointment to a teacher and would not be able to rectify the situation for the rest of the year.

One year her teacher asked her why she didn't like math. She told the teacher she could not explain the way math appeared to her. She said it's almost like listening to a song and knowing the next note even though you have never heard the song before. The teacher then asked her to come in during her lunch period and together she thought they could find a way to make math make sense for the young girl.

Seriously doubting that she could ever face math the way all of her classmates did she kept the lunchtime appointment. It was there she first heard Wagner's great work. They listened together for a while and then the teacher asked her to think about how the notes related to one another. Having had some musical training the young girl listened to how the harmony was interwoven with the dissonant chords. She finally understood what her teacher wanted her to learn. Just like the music needed the dissonance to illuminate the tones, life needs it as well. The wise teacher told the young girl to stop trying to see what everyone else saw when they looked at a math problem and be glad for how they appeared to her.

While the young girl would often find herself unable to satisfy subsequent math instructors, she never found herself bored in math class again. Tristan und Isolde and the creative and thoughtful teacher would always have a special place in her heart.

And that is why I reminded you of this date.

-jené

Can't get away

This morning started off early, but I beat the alarm clock into submission. Since I had showered last night I could use the time allotted for that to sleep. I finally rolled over to meditate and the prayer for this morning dealt with silence. It began; In the silence of the morning I am alive to the new day's light. I am currently working my way through Lamentations right now and the reading for today was chapter 3 verses 27-29


God proves to be good to the man who passionately waits,
to the woman who diligently seeks.
It's a good thing to quietly hope,
quietly hope for help from God.
It's a good thing when you're young
to stick it out through the hard times.

When life is heavy and hard to take,
go off by yourself. Enter the silence.
Bow in prayer. Don't ask questions:
Wait for hope to appear.
Don't run from trouble. Take it full-face.
The "worst" is never the worst.

The Message

What is so ironic about using both of these for meditation this morning was knowing that they were going to be doing heavy building at the store again today. I have migraines a couple of times a month but right now it is an almost daily occurrence. Between the loud noise and hot temperatures that remodeling bring I am fighting a losing battle. So when I got to the phrase The "worst" is never the worst, I just had to laugh. I told God I appreciated His starting my day off with a chuckle.

When I got to work I was not surprised to find it was going to be a really loud day. Most of us had not brought our lunches today as we had no idea if the break room was going to be available as it is moving this week. Three of us headed of to BerryHill to take advantage of $1.99 fish taco Monday. When we got there the real fun began. We had left a loud store remodel for a peaceful lunch to end up in a restaurant also being remodeled. Naturally that caused more laughter. James treated us to lunch and outside of the noise level occasionally rising, we had a great time. Thanks James, you are a generous friend.

I find it a joy that I have a God who can enjoy the humor of the absurd and use it to His benefit. When I finally made it home tonight I could really value the silence.

Quietly,

jené

Making friends the hard way

I am taking care of an aging cat for friends this week while they are on vacation. He seemed listless when I visited earlier today so I went back to check on him tonight. I wanted him to have a good brushing and massage but I was in too much pain to manage it earlier. He was so excited to see me tonight he stayed in my lap for over an hour and purred almost the entire time.

I was heading home around 11:30 and found myself stopped at a red light in front of police car. I soon saw the officer flash her lights so I pulled over. As I was waiting for the officer to get out of the car I was pondering why I was being stopped. I couldn't recall anything I had done wrong. She started toward the car with an apology. Seems she had run my car plates and found them to be expired. When she double checked she realized she had input the plate wrong by one digit. She was so busy apologizing she was a little startled when I began laughing. She said she was surprised I wasn't going to berate her for her mistake. I told her as a profoundly dyslexic person I would be the last person to be upset about mixing up letters and numbers. I told her that Jesus was the only perfect person to walk the earth and that as she and I were equally flawed I couldn't be angry at her. We chatted for a little while and then she followed me down the street to make sure I got home safely.

I will confess it's the most unusual way I have ever made a new friend.

Chuckling still,

jené