No, I'm not going to post about something gross. I've been (literally) sick since last Sunday, the 15th.
It all started with a sore back and achy muscles on the Saturday night prior. I was at the Jolly Holiday for an 8 hour shift, which normally wears you out, but not this much. Something must be up, I thought. I got off at 1:15 and came straight home.
The next day I awoke. Good morning fever. I hoped it would go away for a few hours, and when that didn't end up happening I called in sick for work ....Can I just say real quick, I have been back at Disney since June, and have not called in sick (or persona, or transportation, OR dependent) until now. ... I missed church, my dad moved my car into the driveway (so I wouldn't get a ticket when the street-sweeper came by like clockwork just after 8am on Monday morning.
Monday... I remember it well, a day much like today, but it was actually a week ago ;) Fever still.... hot.... cold.... hot ... cold. I will never understand why a person who is 100 plus degrees on the inside will feel cold. oh well.
Tuesday... still sick. still have a fever. Well.... I had plans for a date today. At least I have my Jell-O.... Can I just say, Jell-O will help make any sick person fell better. If they say they don't want any then call 911 and take them to the Emergency Room, it is more serious than you may think.....
Wednesday... Oh great, now I have itchy bumps, where is my benadryl? I better look up fever symptoms online. I did. It was a HUUUUUGE mistake. Try it yourself if you don't believe me. See how many types of fever there are that you never knew existed. And see how many of these articles are about children rather than 29 year olds who still live at home (and who probably spend more time online than children). Aren't these sites supposed to know this kind of stuff to help advertise better? Do they think I have children? Do they think adults don't get fevers?
Thursday... The benadryl works, but the bumps come back, I thought the fever had broken, well, it broke again I suppose. I was going to call the doctor today and see if I should be concerned, but I felt ok. Why bother the doctor with something that was going away? Who wants to make a co-payment for a fever that was already leaving? Well, the doctor's office closes at 5:30 and that is pretty much the same time my fever decided to return (pesky little buggar!)
Friday.... bumps, benadryl, "Hi, I need to see my doctor today." Later that afternoon my doctor looks down my throat and says "wow, you have tonsillitis, those things are covered in puss!" *sigh* SO that explains the fever, the soreness... the itchy bumps? well they're going away, if you MUST know ;)
TODAY (yes, i skipped the weekend), I have a sore neck, and can still see my infected tonsils in the bathroom mirror. I have a pretty Red bottle of Amoxicillin from the Target Pharmacy which I am taking every 8 hours for 10 days. I have plans to go back to work on Wednesday afternoon. We'll see about that! ;)
What did I do while I was sick? Well, I decided to spend some time with my Kindle (she LOVES to read to me). We have gone through the first 2 volumes of Philip Schaff's History of the Christian Church. I've also watched some BSG, when I can't read anymore!
I just watched this video, created by my employer (who I in no way represent on this blog). I would like to offer the following comments:
0. Do not misread me. Before I comment, I must (sadly) assure some of you that I am not a hate-filled bigoted homophobe. I am an evangelical Christian and I love my gay and lesbian friends. I am no better than anyone and wish only the best for them. No one should be harassed or endure physical violence for merely being different.
1.Homosexuality is not being different, it is acting different. The premise of this video is that homosexuals should draw encouragement from supportive communities and friends rather than give in to suicidal thoughts and feelings of hopelessness and despair. The assertion is that they have been targeted for being different, rather than acting different. It bears pointing out that homosexuality is recognizable by a person's actions (sex w/ someone of the same gender) not their state of being. In other words, homosexuality is a description of behavior, not of a person's biology, genetics, or whatever else is part of an individual from birth until death. Think about it, a man who is by all outward appearances heterosexual (he has a wife, has never slept with another man, etc) would not be taken seriously if he said he was gay. Flip it around, a guy who has sex with men, who isn't attracted to women, and who then denies he is gay would also endure some correction from his community. Even if you don't admit it, we all know that homosexuality is a behavior, a choice to have sex w/ members of the same gender. Until that happens you are not a homosexual. Because of that harassment toward homosexuals is not analogous to, say, racism or sexism.
2. Homosexual attraction is not homosexuality. Lest someone object "but they are only attracted to other men (or other women), they can't help that!" I must point out that there are many people who do not indulge every passing attraction and impulse. There are many people who feel homosexual attraction, who seek counseling and overcome those unwanted feelings without giving in to them. There are other people who struggle with unwanted homosexual attractions their entire life, who still refuse to indulge them. My friends, these folks are not homosexual, they illustrate the truth that homosexual behavior is a choice.
3. What if being (acting) different is wrong? This video is not alone in its failure to recognize the possibility that homosexuality is wrong. Many ethical and moral stances are presupposed in this video: homosexuality is right, bullying them is wrong, suicide is wrong... There was one interesting comment at 6:13,
One direction is not the only direction that you have to go in.And that there's no rule book that states "this is how life needs to be" and that its fine what you love and do what you love and you'll be happy.
I wonder which rule book was in this gentleman's mind.... Clearly, the move toward accepting homosexual behavior as a part of a valid (moral) lifestyle must necessarily include ignoring what God has said about it. I get that. Maybe you don't care what God has said, maybe you don't even believe God has spoken (or maybe he doesn't exist at all). This is really where the issue gets sticky for my homosexual friends (and for their supporters who are not themselves homosexual). To state the problem succinctly: your moral judgments are %100 arbitrary.
In the secular worldview moral judgements are always arbitrary. Think about those snapshots from the lives of those folks toward the beginning of the video. They were gay or lesbian and were threatened or harassed for it. There were also the bullies who called names, who taunted, who punched them. Group #1 acted in one way, group #2 acted in a different way. Group #1 felt threatened by group #2, group #2 felt threatened (somehow) by group #1. Find me a morally objective way to make group #2 wrong without also making group #1 wrong.
If you are thinking that the homosexuals weren't hurting anyone then might I point out that you have no good reason to attribute the infliction (or prevention) of pain with moral qualities. If you want to borrow from the Christian worldview then maybe we can talk. But if you, like the gentleman quoted above deny the reality of an authoritative rule book on life then why make the person who causes pain the bad guy? Why not make pleasure immoral? If you have no rule book then what are you left with but your subjective personal feelings?
Perhaps you believe that the bullies were wrong because they acted on hatred. While it is easy to assert that someone harbors hatred against someone else it is just that, an assertion. We do not know why those folks decided to harass our friends in the video. Perhaps they loved to harass homosexuals. Maybe they were simply acting on an impulse to torment some gay folks. The gays have homosexual impulses and bullies have violent impulses (be they verbal or physical). If we have no rule book and we ought to do what we love so we can be happy, as our friend is quoted above, then why side w/ group #1 and not Group #2? What if the bullies loved bullying more than the gays loved being gay? Would it then be wrong to stand in the way of the bullies doing what they love?
I am not saying that secularists or non-Christians do not have morals, it is clear that we all do. What I am saying is that anyone who embraces the worldview held by those who made this video betray the very people whom they are seeking to help by failing to provide an objective moral standard for sexuality (in particular) and for behavior (in general).
Sorry, point 3 is way longer than the other points.... one more thought before point 4.
It is assumed that suicide is wrong, but how can that be taken seriously? If we should do what we love (from the no-rule-book quote) then what do you say to someone who would love to kill himself? Is that a good time to start flipping pages in the rule book you just told him to ignore? He has the gun to his head, his finger on the trigger and with all of his heart says he would love nothing more than to die. Would you not contradict yourself by insisting that he deny his suicidal impulse, deny him the one thing he would love, and to say he must remain in a world he hates (and, he believes, hates him). And all on your sincere promise that "It gets better"??? I would say "give me a break, you just contradicted yourself!"
What objective ground can be provided that makes one of these loves right and the other one wrong?
4. The video neglected to mention all of the options for struggling homosexuals. I shudder at the idea that any one of my co-workers who felt homosexual attractions and sought help from the company would be told he now had to choose between a life of despair, of suicidal impulses he may soon need to grapple with, and embracing homosexuality. I could be wrong (and would be happy to be proven incorrect here), but I do not believe they would be offered assistance in suppressing their homosexual attraction, even if they wanted to be rid of these new feelings.
The unspoken 3rd option: no longer be homosexual. It does not happen overnight. It is much easier said than done. People who were gay, lesbian, or bisexual can be healed (yes, i said "healed"). Through counseling, prayer, supportive church groups God can, and does, heal. This is a promise not only for homosexuals (lest it seem I am targeting only one group), but also drug addicts, porn addicts, violent people, angry people, thieves, and folks stuck in any other sin you can name.
5. "It gets better" is catchy, but vague. As mentioned above, it is the unquestioned assumption that homosexuals do not need to change, but rather they need to be accepted as homosexual and it will then begin to get better. My question: what exactly is the "it" that gets better? and who exactly gets to decide what qualifies as "better?' The video was produced by the Trevor Project, a group geared toward suicide prevention among LGBT teens and young adults. Is "better" simply not commuting suicide? The video urges homosexuals to surround themselves with supportive friends. Is "better" simply being accepted (a self-fulfilling prophecy)?
And what about the "it" that we are promised will get better? Life gets better? Relationships get better? Maybe, but those still are vague. I have a difficult time understanding how life has any value at all within the secular worldview on display in our video above. Christians have a good reason to value life, we know that all humans (regardless of how they behave sexually) are made in the image of God. Secularists who ignore rule books value life also, but why? Every secularist knows that death occurs in 10 out of 10 people, it is universal! Why value life then if death is inevitable? For that matter, why prevent someone from causing their own death? Because you arbitrarily value life, so much so that you feel the need to impose that value on someone who holds to different values?
6. Concluding Thoughts
If you were in the market for a boat, a really nice one, and your sales person showed you some of your options and you end up buying what you think is a pretty nice boat. You set sail and meet some other boat owners... with much nicer boats. After inquiring where they purchased their vessels you discover that you had been deceived (possibly by the dumbest sales person ever) for you had wanted a nice, expensive boat to meet all of your seafaring needs and he undersold you. Something similar is going on here. There are people who have homosexual impulses and are looking for answers. If your friends, your family, your community (or whoever) only provided you with some of the options, while strategically omitting another (much better) option, then how would you feel about that? Maybe you can relate, you have had homosexual impulses and decided to embrace them by forming a support group of friends and family who will tell you it is OK to be gay. You need to take a step back and explore ALL of your options. Get in touch with Exodus International, a Christian group that helps people who struggle with same sex attraction. Talk to a pastor or christian counselor who is committed to the preaching the Bible. Before you decide that this option is not viable, why not give it a try? What if it really does get better? What if there is healing available from The Healer?
I said at the beginning and I will say again to everyone who reads this, I love my homosexual friends. I love them so much that I am willing to risk telling them of this 3rd option. True love does not support a destructive or sinful behavior. True love sometimes means risking a bad reaction in order to see the other person get right with God and with them self. The most bright and pure display of true love was the death of Jesus Christ on the cross, in which he bore the punishment which his church had incurred. He is loved by some and hated by others. When you attempt to love someone you will not always get a positive response, but friends, do not give up! Some of your homosexual friends will consider what you have to say, others will not. Be vigilant to love them regardless.
What I wrote about conflicting worldviews is not rhetorical flare, it is the meat and potatoes of life. The Bible provides us with not only rules on how to live (and how not to live) but it presents us with the only consistent worldview. Competing worldviews, such as the secular worldview (and there is more than one, I understand that all secularists do not think alike) do not adequately organize the aspects of life to which they speak. They are inconsistent and arbitrary, my 3rd point is one example of this. God created the universe and all that exists, including humans. He exists as the rule-giver on how to think and act. His rules are grounded in nothing less than his own holy and perfect nature. For this reason, all areas of human existence (including sexuality) must be approached in this way: they are created by God with a purpose in mind. Ours is not to arbitrarily invent our own meaning and use for sexuality, but rather to prayerfully approach our creator and seek his wisdom and will for our sexuality.
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This video is of DCA during the time when it was first being built, a little over 10 years ago. I enjoyed it because I opened the park as an Attractions Cast Member at Soarin' Over California and remember some of the places in the video which have been taken out and replaced or are currently under construction in this new HUGE remodel.
