Must read/watch

I came across a really interesting blog entry by someone else.  Well worth the couple of minutes it takes to read it.  Enjoy!

http://www.becomegoodsoil.com/castration-a-case-for-carrying-a-knife/

Guy Brings His White Girl To Barbershop In Harlem And Gets Hated On By B...

Please watch this. This is personal to me. I've been mistreated because of my race before. Moreover, on both sides of my family, I have members that run the spectrum of race. I hate the fact that some of my cousins, before they were adopted, were told "No one wants you because your black." To me, they're just family. I also love a quote that I heard from my dad, and I don't know who he got it from. He said, "If you don't like other races, don't go to heaven, because the Bible says there will be people of every language, ethnicity, and nation."

Biblical Suicide

Last night, before leaving work, I got a call, informing me that the son-in-law of church members had committed suicide.  I spent a while at their house last night talking to them, crying with them, praying with them.

In that time, I thought of a lot of things about suicide.  I know some groups believe that suicide is unforgivable.  They view repentance as asking God to forgive you.  They believe firmly that if you don't ask forgiveness for each individual sin, then God won't forgive it.

People sure think God is petty. 

God is a God of love and mercy.  Mercy isn't Him waiting for the chance to burn us, disappointed when we repent.  God is understanding.  This particular individual was in a car wreck that messed up his brain, a little more than a month ago.  He was also on a medication that had a side effect of suicidal thoughts and actions.  He told the doctor that he was having suicidal thoughts, and the doctor didn't do anything. 

This man had a disease.  He couldn't help it.  God is merciful, and I have hope for him.  I won't guarantee his salvation, because God knows this man's heart, but I have hope.

There are several people in the Bible who commit suicide.  Famously, King Saul and Judas Iscariot killed themselves.  They died in their wickedness.  But two others are praised for their faith.  Samson had faith and repented for the first time in his life, and destroyed the enemy temple and was killed with that act.  The other was a servant of King Saul, who was so grieved that their God appointed king had taken his own life, he also took his own.  Yet he is lifted up as an example of faithfulness.

So if you have a loved one who is depressed or suicidal, get them help.  If you have a loved one that took their own life, please don't let ignorant people steal your hope away.  Trust God.  Love Him.  Know that He is faithful, even when we aren't.

Happy Singleness Awareness Day

Sorry it's late.  This is the first time I've made it out of my driveway in days due to snow.

ObamaCare: A personal testimony

So the CBO report has been highly debated.  Are people losing jobs, or are they walking away from extra jobs because they don't need them?

Well, my mother was nearly canned for insurance purposes.  They ended up negotiating to drop full time employees to ensuring the employee only, not their family.  Since my mom is both a widow and an empty-nester, this allowed her to stay.  Her friend Brenda was not so fortunate.  This 60 year old woman is now working the graveyard shift at Amazon.com's shipping center, doing hard manual labor in 10-12 hour shifts just for insurance coverage.  Where's her promised "freedom"?

What the Democrats call "job lock" we once called "having a steady job."

I've recently become employed once more.  But I took a pay cut of 1/4th, and have to provide my own insurance.  My good friend John Thompson is sending me a monthly check to cover that for the next year.  That's a big relief.

That said, my insurance cost before Obamacare was $65 per month.  Now it is $237.16.  And since they regulate the market, I was not able to find private insurance any cheaper, because Obama tells the companies what they will pay and what they will cover, as well as who your doctor will be.  It's a government HMO.  Thanks for that.

Another thing that changed in the law is that now, I have to have maternity coverage.  You know, in case I give birth.  Now, if I knocked a girl up, she has to have her own coverage.  This won't roll over to her.  Nope.  This is in case I give birth.  I also have to have pediatric dental coverage.  You know, to cover the dental care for kids that I don't have.  And I am required by Federal Law to purchase this. 

Now here's the fun part.  When I went to get private health insurance, I was required to buy this separately.  But when I tried to do this, I was asked for my child's name and Social Security number, which I can't provide because I don't have a kid.  So it is ILLEGAL for my to buy what I am LEGALLY REQUIRED to buy.

All that was done so that I was federally required to buy directly from HealthCare.gov. 

So much for my freedom.  Thanks President Obama.