Dancing With Cinderella

Yesterday afternoon I received news which has caused the last 18 hours to pass in a haze of sorrow, pain, shock and even sickness. As many of you have likely heard, the five year old daughter of Steven Curtis Chapman was killed yesterday in a tragic accident at their home outside Nashville. I can’t even begin to describe the emotions that are filling me.

 

First off, as the immensely proud and humbled father of a beautiful three-and-a-half year old son, my heart is pained at the thought of what it would be like to lose him. I would not be exaggerated one bit when I say that the literal moment of his birth, my life felt as though it had come full circle (and a few of you that know my personal story understand what I mean). That God loved me enough to bless me in such a way was an incredibly overwhelming experience for me, and did more to re-affirm my faith in what was an extremely difficult time for me.

 

Secondly, I have long felt a measure of attachment to Steven Curtis Chapman (who once told the story that he’d always been Steven, until he arrived in Nashville and discovered another singer by the name of Steven Chapman). Not just because he attended my dad’s alma mater, Anderson University, but because I’d always felt as though I’d “known him when”, in other words when he was some kid with a bad mullet traveling the church circuit with a guitar and a box of cassette tapes. I had the opportunity to see him a few times in that setting before his career suddenly skyrocketed. Through all of this, 10 million albums sold later, he’s remained the same kind, caring, giving and humble man he was over 20 years ago.

 

Through his ministry of music and performances, Steven has been an incredible source of strength, inspiration and hope to so many, and I’m confident in stating that literally millions have been impacted through it. That’s an incredible legacy, but an even stronger one is the example of fatherhood that he has been to his children.

 

So why has such a loyal and fervent servant of God been affected in such a way? Trust me, if I had the answer to that one I’d probably be writing this post in a different setting. But, The Bible makes clear that just because one has accepted Christ that we are not immune to pain and suffering. In fact, one could make a logical argument that Christians are often exposed to more of it than non-believers, particularly from persecution.

 

But it certainly is a fair question to ask, and I happened across a post that clarified some of the same thoughts I’ve been having:

 

Isn’t it hypocritical for you and the Christian community to highlight the death of one child - however tragic - when so many die tragically around the world? 

The short answer is, “Yes, I am hypocritical and so are other Christians.”  Why debate this?  We are full of paradoxes and contradictions; But Christians live by Grace.

When the Scriptures say that all have fallen short of the glory of God [Romans 3.23], it meant what it said.  We are utterly fallen and depraved - all of us. 

Numbers do not lie.  One death pales in comparison to the global news of thousands of tragic deaths in Burma [Nargis Cyclone], China [earthquake], and the daily staggering statistics of global poverty where nearly 30,000 children die daily because of poverty.

But there are stories behind numbers.  Steven Curtis Chapman has influenced, encouraged, ministered, exhorted, and befriended millions of people through his music.  And as a result, the death and loss of their youngest child feels close to home.  Christians should must care for the suffering around the world but it shouldn’t need to apologize for mourning and grieving over Marie Sue.  We are called to rejoice with those who rejoice and mourn with those who mourn.  [Romans 12.15]  

And we are mourning with the Chapman family.

Where is the hope in this death of Steven Curtis Chapman’s daughter?  How can you say God is good?

Let’s be honest here.  It is hard to say, “God is good,” during situations that bring us to utter pain and desolation.  But the path to hope and healing always goes through doubt, pain, anger, grief, and mourning. 

But there is a path.

There is Hope because Death Does Not Have the Final Say!  While I clearly cannot speak for God, I do not believe this death was the will of God.  But nevertheless, it is not outside the Sovereignty of God.  Simply, God is in control.  God was not surprised.  He is sovereign and He remains in control.

There is HOPE - even in this tragedy - because it cannot separate us from the love of God that is the gospel of Christ:

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. [Romans 8:38-39]

There is HOPE because the Chapmans do not journey alone.  For example, as evidenced by the millions that searched for their stories on search engines, the thousands [literally] of comments on the In Memory of Maria tribute and blog posts, people care.  The body of Christ cares.  When we don’t have the courage and strength to HOPE, others HOPE for us.  No one person or one family exists on an island to themselves.  This is the beauty of the body of Christ.

There is HOPE because ultimately, God cares.  He has not forgotten or forsaken. And He continues to use all circumstances and situations - even tragedies - to beckon His children and the larger creation - back unto Himself.  God restores.  God reconciles. God redeems.  There is HOPE because there is Life beyond this world.  There is HOPE because in short, there is God. 

God is HOPE.

 

Rep. Paul Ryan on Entitlements and Our Future

Congressman Paul Ryan of Wisconsin has an editorial in today’s Wall Street Journal about the future of entitlement spending in this country. Unlike most of his colleagues, he actually proposes some ideas on how to combat the problem.

While Congress will have a partisan debate over the federal budget this week, there is a growing, bipartisan consensus about the greatest threat to our nation's long-term economic prosperity: the explosion of entitlement spending. Unfortunately, Washington is not planning to address that problem this week, or any time soon. By doing nothing, we are shackling our future with unsustainable debt and taxes.

According to the Congressional Budget Office, Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and the rest of government will consume nearly 40% of the economy by the time my three young children reach my age (38). This will require more than doubling the average tax burden of the past 40 years just to keep the government afloat. Continuing down this path will eventually strangle our economy.

He focuses on three main areas: Medicaid and Medicare, Social Security and Tax Reform.

Your thoughts?

 

Malaise: The Sequel

Echoes of Jimmy Carter. Again:

Pitching his message to Oregon's environmentally-conscious voters, Obama called on the United States to "lead by example" on global warming, and develop new technologies at home which could be exported to developing countries.

"We can't drive our SUVs and eat as much as we want and keep our homes on 72 degrees at all times ... and then just expect that other countries are going to say OK," Obama said.

All together now: YES WE CAN!!!

The duty of POTUS is to protect the interests of the citizens of the United States. Put another way, POTUS has a duty to protect our standard of living. Giving other countries veto power over our standard of living is the exact opposite of that duty.

And yet Obama is making this sound like his own policy.

Like I asked before: whose side is Barack Obama on?

(h/t: Hot Air; crossposted at Pro Cynic and Circle City Pundit)

Ted Kennedy Has a Brain Tumor

Mary Jo Kopechne could not be reached for comment.

A "Brave Victory" in Alaska

 Kudos to Alaska Governor Sarah Palin for standing up to the pro-abortion crowd (you know, the ones who refer to themselves as “pro-choice, but rarely are) and warmly accepting and loving her newborn son Trig (which is a Norse word meaning “brave victory”), despite knowing he had Down’s Syndrome months before his birth.

 

As Newsbusters.org explains:

 

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin isn't just a pro-life politician. She recently proved she's pro-life by personal example. In an age when many parents receive the news that they're carrying a baby with Down syndrome and then "terminate" the pregnancy," Gov. Palin gave birth to a son with Down syndrome and announced her delight at God's blessing. The national news rarely covers much from Alaska, but this story also has a heartwarming pro-life angle, which offers a political reason for the media to go whistling past it. [UPDATE: A reader noted Alaska's AP had it, and the picture I've added.]

Alaskan columnist Effie Caldarola wrote it up and I read it in my church paper, the Arlington Catholic Herald. I couldn't find it online:

Over a month ago, her office announced that the 44-year-old and her husband, Todd, were expecting their fifth child in May. It was a secret the beguiling brunette, a runner, managed to keep from even her staff.

Then, April 18, she surprised us again by giving birth a month early to Trig Palin, 6 pounds, 2 ounces. In true Sarah fashion, her amniotic fluid leaked in Texas, she gave a speech at a Republican Governors Association convention as scheduled anyway, and then returned to Alaska to deliver.

Immediately the family made this announcement: "Trig is beautiful and already adored by us. We knew through early testing he would face special challenges, and we feel privileged that God would entrust us with this gift and allow us unspeakable joy as he entered our lives."

Trig Palin has Down syndrome. Early prenatal testing alerted the Palins to this chromosomal abnormality, as it is alerting more and more families in the early stages of pregnancy.

Unfortunately, because of early screening, more children with Down syndrome are aborted and fewer and fewer are being born.

Children with Down syndrome do bring "unspeakable joy" into this world. I know the laughter and blessings my 5-year-old nephew, Ethan, with Down syndrome, has brought to our family. But how do you explain this joy to a perfection-at-any-price world?

Politicians rarely help. How many politicians are ever called upon to really walk the walk in their lives?

....Palin, a politician who has been eloquent in her defense of life before birth, has now proven with her own life how much she truly "walks the walk."

Thank you, Sarah, for a beautiful witness given to us through a little one whose Norse name, Trig, means "brave victory."