His journey here is over..

M. Scott Peck who wrote 'The Road Less Traveled' and other wonderful books has died of cancer. Because of him and his works, I walked the road with much more confidence in myself and my Savior and have much more patience with my brothers and sister. When my time comes, I hope I have one tenth the impact on the world, for good, as did Mr. Peck. By now, I know he's out of pain and awaiting God's words 'well done, my good and faithful servant.'

The Road Less Traveled, was published by Simon & Schuster in 1978. The book has sold over six million copies to date in North America alone, and has been translated into over 20 languages.

Dr. Peck's second book, People of the Lie: The Hope For Healing Human Evil, was published by Simon & Schuster in October of 1983. It is recognized as a ground-breaking contribution to the field of psychology, and is currently a best seller in Japan. It is my favorite of his books.

Dr. Peck was a medical doctor, a practicing psychiatrist. He began his Christian walk as a Methodist.

Is there really such an animal?

Adult ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) seems to have sprung a life of its own. In the past 20 years or so, the diagnosis of this condition has increased dramatically. We have more sophisticated diagnostic tools and the social acceptance of the malady may help explain what's happening, but there are other considerations.

When I first began studying psychology, the 'illness of the year' was 'borderline personality.' It was the diagnosis for 'I haven't a clue what's wrong with this person' as schizophrenia was the 'in' diagnosis 40-50 years ago. Some believe ADD is the new 'generic illness' of the year.

Times change, how people act, dress, speak etc. change, but the human brain itself has not changed that we know of, with our modern diagnostic equipment. An MRI scan of the 80 year old brain affected by the culture of 'roaring 20's' is no different in physicality from the 20 year old 'reality TV' cultured brain. In fact, our brains' hardwiring is virtually unchanged from prehistoric times. Over the centuries, we have learned to cram in more and more information without crashing from the overload. We handle the threat of over-stimulation by filtering the constant sensory bombardment. We acquire habits and routines that allow us to carry out many of our daily activities without having to think about what we're doing. When conscious thought is required, we are most efficient when we attend to one or two things at a time. We concentrate on one area in order to handle the action required competently and immediately. We ignore irrelevant materials floating around us because they are not our current focus. The ability to do that was always there. The cave man adapted to his surroundings and culture too.

Some things outside the brain have changed drastically though which makes me think there really is an 'attention deficit' disorder in some of us. At the dawn of the Twenty-first Century, we find ourselves living in an atmosphere of constant noise and never-ending, blow-your-mind stimuli. Our kids have more information to learn than people could have imagined several generations ago. 'Half Pint' on the prarie could not have imagined the space race, the racial divide and many, many other events since then. Then, there's the TV, the CD, the DVD, the ipod, the cell phone, the chat room, all demanding attention, not to mention mom and dad wanting perfection. After all that homework, they play endless video games with so much stimuli that some kids have seizures from the ever changing colors and movement on the screen. Automobiles are no longer just another means of transportation. They have become electronics on wheels with boom boxes, CD players, subscriber radio networks, and built-in television monitors and DVDs.

So, I can't help but wonder at the explosion in ADHD which results in medications for the condition being among the most popular prescriptions issued. We have adults and children who lack the capacity to concentrate on what they
read, what they see, and what they hear. When the brain fails to fully attend to new
information, it lacks the ability to lay down memory traces and the information quickly fades away. It appears the brain has not changed, but it cannot keep up. TMI.. too much information.

Personal lives are diminished for those who can't concentrate long enough to finish tasks they started with such good intentions. Interpersonal relationships suffer due to poor communication skills and the lack of that personal empathy which requires one to intensively focus on another human being to really understand their feelings.

While we continue to dispense the medications that act to filter the stimuli overload, and use psychological modification techniques to mold acceptable social behavior, we also need to look inside our own homes and practice preventive care.

We need to limit limit overexposure to the electronic world. We need to set priorities. We need to slow down and read books again, think and talk at the family's dinner table. We need to love our brain, treat it with respect.

We need to spend time with our kids and not use 'electric baby sitters,' be it TV, DVD, video game or internet. It's our future but, more importantly, it's their future. A medicated brain is not the optimal brain. Seek help when you need it but medication should not be the 'drug of choice.' Restraint and common sense in living the modern life would be most helpful. I won't add prayer and Bible reading, since I am read by Christian and nonChristian alike, but you know how I think. :)

Have a great weekend and happy concentrating!

God save us from the legalists...

I talked a long time today, on the phone, with my good friend Matt who is a youth pastor in southern Virginia. He was telling me of some of the problems he was encountering from some members of the congregation. He said, laughing, 'God save us from the legalists.' I asked for his definition of 'legalist,' and he said 'one never knowing Grace therefore unable to be gracious.' I laughed for that is not the 'real' definition of legalism, and Matt is always entertaining. He was onto something, though, when he said legalists do not know about grace with a capital G.

Legalism teaches a salvation that is based upon human works instead of God's grace. They are concerned with, and some consumed with, the 'law,' following commandments. Whose commandments? We must follow the commandments of the Lord. 1 John 2:3-4
says "(3)And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. (4) He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him."

Legalists go way beyond that. It's as though they wish to much to be like Jesus and somewhere along the line they think they've finally made it, and then they decide that only people just like them are like Him. Those who agree with them are right, and any brother (or sister) who dares disagree with them are wrong. They eventually lose sight of being like Jesus and aspire to be like themselves, their pictures of the 'perfect' Christian.

Since they "know" they are entirely and always right, they feel they must demand that their ideas/interpretations/opinions become those of all. Any dissenter is doomed, for legalists know (they think) exactly what God teaches and requires. If persuasion doesn’t change a brother’s mind, then other means are appropriate, even means which most Christians would say are totally inappropriate for a Christian. It could be banning/shunning another believer or 'churching them,' i.e., forcing them out of the congregation or some other form of 'persuasion.' If the brother does not conform, he is no longer accepted as a brother.

To "endure to the end," to survive the mystery of lawlessness that will mark the end time, we must hold fast to God's Word and seek His righteousness. "Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the [New Jerusalem]" (Revelation 22:14).

On the flip-side of the coin, it is legalism to establish standards for other people when the Bible does not address the issue.

I am very leery of people who have a 'set of rules' that the Christian must obey if the 'set of rules' is not scriptural. Have you known Christians who are very concerned with how much make up your wife wears, how long the sleeves are on her dress, etc.? They took 'modest dress' and made it into a 'dress code,' legalistic behavior.

I advise the people who counsel with me about Christian matters to base their believes and their behaviors on the scriptures. Where the scriptures are 'silent,' they have personal freedom to pray and meditate and ask the Holy Spirit for guidance. They do not have to live under some cultish list of rules or by the rules of any legalistic tyrant out there, even if it's a preacher.

Legalism teaches a salvation that is based upon human works instead of God's grace. As Matt said, 'God save us from the legalists.' Let us be gracious to one another, loving one another, being tolerant -- not of sin but of the brother or sister who is striving to live the Christian life.

Finally, 1Co 13:2 says "And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing." Legalism and those practicing it are strangers to charity (love) or grace or graciousness. They are lost in their own 'laws.'

Speak up...

Have you ever had someone suddenly 'shun' you, just not associate with you anymore, leaving you wondering what in the world you did to deserve such treatment? Why is it that some people just won't 'speak up?' Is it a fear of confrontation?

I prefer, when I have offended someone, somehow, that they say so and why. Else, how will I ever learn what I say or do that might be inappropriate? If I defend myself, and they understand me, then maybe a friendship is saved. If they still feel they are 'right,' the air has been cleared anyway, and both have had their say, and no one is left to wonder. 'Is it my breath?' lol

Proverbs 10:18 "He that hideth hatred with lying lips, and he that uttereth a slander, is a fool."

Do you know where your children are?

and... what about your wife (or husband :)?

Worried parents who want minute-by-minute tracking of their kids online and off can turn to advanced radio frequency identity chips, global positioning systems (GPS), specially designed cell phones and new Internet monitoring methods. And the prices for these gadgets,once seen only in spy novels, are coming down to mass-market levels. The $900 GPS kid locator backpack has been replaced by a $100 GPS cell phone that, when coupled with applications like MapQuest Find Me and Teen Arrive Alive, can help find a errant teenager or a lost child. Parenting, it seems, has entered the surveillance age.

Sentry, an Internet-protection program that does more than screen out X-rated sites. Sentry and similar programs like ContentProtect, log e-mail, let you watch instant messaging conversations in real time, provide instant screenshots and send e-mail or cell-phone alerts when instant messaging conversations start to get explicit or reveal too much private information. And they allow parents to shut down the programs by logging on to the program from another computer.

This is scary stuff, at least it seems so to me. I do worry about kids with internet access, but is this kind of 'surveillance' a good thing? Whatever happened to trust? Can you imagine, when you were a teen, how you would have felt if mom and dad knew every step you took? Tracking a kid's car, listening in to his chats, just seems we are going too far. What do you think?

Judgement on a 'wicked' city?

The Katrina disaster, according to some fundamentalist Christians, was God's judgement on a wicked city. I find that difficult to believe on several levels, the first being that Alabama took quite a hit too. Alabama wasn't preparing to have a 'gay mardi gras' parade that I know of. Natural disasters happen. To suggest that the many thousands of victims 'deserved' their fate is unbelievable. It is also a terrible way to view God's love.

If the claims are true, then what evil deeds were the victims of the Tsunami in Southeast Asia poised to commit? And why are cities like Rio de Janeiro still above water when Carnival celebrations are tolerated year after year?

If New Orleans is a 'wicked city,' how many more wicked cities didn't get deluged by Katrina? Why would God single out just one for judgement? If to make an example, a big city of rich white people might make a better statement and better 'press' for it seems many don't care for the many thousands of poor black people. Another question comes to my mind. I wonder how many of those victims are Christians?

I have no claim to know the mind of God. The bible says no one knows the mind of God, but simple logic tells me he would not operate that way. In the old testament, when God brought judgement upon a people, he gave plenty of warning and took credit for it (through his prophets). Thus, until God speaks, I believe it was a 'natural' disaster, not a supernatural one.