A place for my random thoughts, anecdotes and reflections of what I see and experience in this lifetime.

Monday, February 28, 2011

They who are blameless should cast the first stone

Warning: disturbing paraphrases of comments made on the internet below.

I have been quite horrified by the many comments that have been made by the Australian public towards the airing of an interview with the mother of Martin Bryant, the man who had been accused of murdering 35 people and wounding many others in Port Arthur on April 28, 1996.

Many comments have been made on the web about how both her and her son should not be alive, he is to blame for giving birth to him and that her opinion and her story should never be told because no-one else really cares about what she thinks. Other opinions state that it was disgrace to air the interview in the first place as it was insensitive towards the victims of the massacre that are still suffering as a result.
 
Is this really what our society has become? Putting our contempt for human beings in writing for the whole world to read?
 
Words are easily said but the effect of such words run far deeper than anyone can possibly imagine. We are all guilty of saying horrible things to each other (both friends and strangers) but to even say or write such horrible and awful things about someone else on the World Wide Web is just wrong.
 
Others could sum up this in 3 words: 'Tall Poppy Syndrome' which is part of the society that I live in, although I don't agree with it.
 
However, I think this goes way beyond this and is actually moving towards 'Public Degradation for One's Amusement".
 
Whilst not all of us are murderers, are we really any better than them? Are the accusations made going to 'improve' your chances of getting a VIP pass into heaven? Do comments like this mean you are a better person than anyone else?
 
Would you really be game enough to stand before God and say "God, I thank you that I am not like other people- robbers, evildoers, adulterers, or definitely not like this murderer. I donate money to charities, I help people when I'm asked to help because overall I'm a pretty good person that deserves to go to heaven because my good things outweigh the bad."
 
I pray for these people that they will realise (just like me), that I am no better than anyone else (murderers, criminals etc) and that I need forgiveness like the person who says 'God, have mercy on me, a sinner'.
 
 
 
 

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

How Great is Our God

I was privileged to welcome 2 new sisters in Christ last night after 6 months going through the series 'Stranger on the Road to Emmaus'.

The angels rejoice in the presence of the Lord, we rejoice with them as 2 more people have been shown the way to eternal life, have accepted that there is nothing we humans can do to be made right with God except the blood of Jesus Christ.

Courtesy of our mate Chris, sing with me:

The splendour of the the King
Clothed in majesty
Let all the earth rejoice, all the earth rejoice
He wraps himself in light,
And darkness tries to hide
And trembles at His voice, trembles at His voice

How great is our God
Sing with me how great is our God,
And all will sing how great
How great is our God.

Age to age He stands,
And time is in His hands
The Beginning and the End, beginning and the end
The Godhead, three in one
Father, Spirit, Son
The Lion and the Lamb, Lion and the Lamb

How great is our God
Sing with me how great is our God,
And all will sing how great
How great is our God.

Name above all names
You are worthy of all praise
And my heart will sing
How great is our God.