Sarah Palin is right, the election for the U.S. Presidency IS in God’s hands after all.  Oh, you thought it was in the hands of millions of U.S. voters?  Well, yes it.  And no, it isn’t.

We do have free will, but it ends where God’s sovereignty begins.  If His hand is in this election, His Spirit is able to move the hearts of the people to vote one way or the other.  The Bible credits Him for building up nations and for tearing them down, democracy or not, and ultimately, just as so many nations have been before it, the future of our country is in His hands.

If Obama wins, I believe he will be the instrument by which God begins judgment on this nation for its grievous sins, beginning with the Christian church.  If McCain wins, I believe we will have been granted a miraculous reprieve from judgment, perhaps in part because of the remnant of God’s people who have even now refused to bow down to Baal and have prayed fervently for a stay of execution.  But whether it’s McCain or Obama, God’s will WILL be done.  He will work, and “who shall let it?”  (Isaiah 43:13)

In light of this truth, it makes me wonder: what if, in spite of a half-billion dollar campaign, in spite of massive voter fraud, in spite of polls predicting landslides and demoralizing the opposition, in spite of a dominating mass media machine that has been completely in his tank, in spite of a world population that overwhelmingly supports him, in spite of an economic crisis that has caused people to blame the wrong villains, Obama still loses?

In the face of such insurmountable odds, will we give God the glory for it?  Will even the non-Christians marvel and admit the “finger of God” has been in this?  Or wil lthey rationalize with excuses and claims of racial bias?

Or what if Obama wins, devastating the followers of movements such as Lou Engle’s The Call?  Will they take it as proof that God does not hear their prayers and subsequently fall away to bitterness and apostasy?  Or will they recognize the folly of their ways and repent, recognizing that in order for a nation to be restored, the church itself must be restored first?

These are interesting times we live in indeed.  But whether we face judgment or a stay of execution, I am convinced that those who belong to the Lord will lack for nothing even in the darkest of times.  They will not be forsaken, nor their seed begging bread.  One thousand may fall at their side, but it shall not come near them.  While the world of Egypt is plagued, the people of God will remain safe in Goshen.  This is the heritage of the servants of God, and their righteousness shall always be of Him.

Now, if I can just get a girlfriend… 

Tags: apostasy, bible, campaign, christian, Christians, church, country, economic crisis, election, fraud, God, judgment, lord, lou engle, mass media, media, nation, prayer, prayers, presidency, reprieve, sarah palin, Spirit, vote, voters
Categories: Politics and Poker
 
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Directly in Hurricane Gustav’s path, that’s where. 

Well… maybe not exactly in its path.  I don’t think I’d be that crazy, but I’d definitely be down there, volunteering wherever I could to help people get ready or escort them out of the area if possible.

And then I might just stick around near the coastline for some snapshots and video that I could upload to my blog. 

Ok maybe I am a little crazy.  I don’t really value my life that much anyway, and since I don’t have a house or a family of my own that I’d be leaving behind, who would miss me? 

Seriously though, this is what I would live for.  Without being tied down to a job or a house, I’d be a free spirit able to roam anywhere in the country, and since my income would be drawn from my blog earnings, I’d have more time to volunteer for any charity driven projects that I come across during my travels.

In fact, if my blog were already enjoying financial success, I’d probably be in Mississippi or Louisiana now, Red-Crossing my way around the states for a while and then driving down to the coastline so I can watch Gustav cross over.  After all, nothing says fun like being trapped in a category 5 hurricane. 

I’m not sure why, there’s just something about massively violent storms that truly warms the cackles of my heart.  I was actually born during a hurricane too, the lights flickering on and off in the hospital while the entire building shook and rumbled from the sheer force of the hurricane winds.  Total chaos while the doctors delivered me, the same way you might expect it to be if it was the Antichrist himself being born.    It was said that the circumstances of my birth was an omen of things to come.  Hee hee.

But seriously… 

I may not be able to achieve my financial goals with this blog anytime soon, but since I will be debt free in a few months, and my site still generates a modest income, if I can’t break free I might at least be able to extend the rope that’s been tying me down, and travel in short spurts here and there instead.  Since I regularly have four days off every other week, I’ll have the opportunity to take extended weekend road trips to wherever I want to go, and I’ll be able to blog about it all too.  For the short term that’s an entirely feasible goal for me, and if I keep paying down my debts at the rate I’m doing, by this time next year it may all become a reality.  Baby steps here, baby steps. 

In the meantime, my prayers go out to all those in the path of Gustav, and hope that the damage won’t be as extensive or as destructive as many of us originally feared.

Tags: birth, blog, charity, dream, free spirit, goals, hurricane gustav, hurricanes, income, nomad, prayers, road trip, storm, storms, travel, travels, tzedakah, volunteering
Categories: Lincoln's Personal Log
 
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I was kinda in a really bad mood.

I do have moments like that (more than I’d care to admit), but after I calm down, a kind of melancholy then sets in. I really don’t want to be this angry with Him, but it’s hard trying to make some sense out of the events of the last few years, and since I’m the kind of guy who wears his heart on his sleeve, every bad thing that happens in life tends to cut me deeply.

There are times though when I suspect that I’m personally the butt of some sick, heavenly joke. I’d pray I meet someone at work for example who could be “the one” for me, and when I do meet that person, she ends up rejecting me and marrying another co-worker. If the answer to a prayer has to be no, fine, but why rub it in my face? Why humiliate me like that?

And that’s what life seems to be like these days: a series of prayers that not only go unanswered or rejected, but also seem to require some form of divine punishment for even daring to make them. Why?

It’s a simple question, but one that I don’t think will ever be answered.

Tags: abandoned, bad mood, blush, co worker, forsaken, God, hate, hated, heart, humiliation, joke, melancholy, prayer, prayers, unanswered, unloved, unwanted
Categories: Lincoln's Personal Log
 
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God has seen fit that I should not make my journey through life without having a persistent, (and oftentimes irritating) conscience to guide me. Unsure as to how I could introduce this important figure on my blog, I decided just to name “him” Jiminy Cricket. And my old friend Cricket was at it once again when I took the stack of textbooks and primers I had bought some time ago to prep for law school, and started putting some of them up for bid on eBay.

“What are you doing?” Jiminy inquired.

“I’m selling my books. My law school plans are done. It’s time to move on.”

“Why don’t you wait a little while longer?? You might still be able to go!”

“Why?? My boss screwed me over, it’s already two weeks past the deadline to make a deposit, it’s finished!”

Ole’ Jiminy then hopped onto my desk. “Give God a chance to work, it’s not over yet. There’s still plenty of time, and God always tends to move when things look impossible.”

I threw my hands up in frustration. “Look, how long do I have to put up with this? My prayers haven’t been answered, in fact just the opposite of what I asked for happened. I’ve been running around in circles with this for over 18 months. I’m sick of it. I’m tired, and I just want to move on with my life.”

“You need to be patient, my friend. You’ve seen in the past that God is never in a hurry. Give Him space to work.”

“Space this,” I said, and shooed Cricket away as I placed 2 of my law books up on eBay.

Tags: answers, blog, books, boss, conscience, cricket, desk, ebay, frustration, God, guide, hurry, jiminy cricket, journey, law school, old friend, patience, prayers, primers, stack, textbooks, waiting
Categories: Lincoln's Personal Log
 
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Ahhh, Friday has arrived at last, giving me a little time to reflect on the failure that is my life.

I couldn’t help but notice how the entire world and God Himself blew me off this week. I got blown off by my boss when I begged him for help in working new hours so I could go to law school. I got blown off by my union rep in trying to resolve some of the ongoing issues at work, from the mouse droppings on my desk to the bigwigs’ initial refusal to accommodate my disability. I got blown off by personnel, who I inquired of for a transfer so I could get the *bleep* out of here. I got blown off by Uptown Girl, who strung me along for weeks before finally ignoring me altogether. I got blown off by friends, by family members, and finally God Himself, who I’ve appealed to repeatedly with many tears and pleas for answers and relief from my troubles.

And now, once again, it’s Friday night and I’m here all alone, with only the wedding photo of a girl I had a crush on here at work to keep me company. Evidently someone thought it’d be nice to leave a copy of our department newsletter on my desk, turned precisely to the page that showed a caption and photo of her recent wedding. Thanks dude! assface…

My latest failures, the problems at work, the loss of yet another career dream, the loss of my latest romantic prospective, all finally took its toll on me last night. As I went through my normal work routine, I suddenly broke down and started sobbing. A wave of depression came over me like a dark fog, draining all my energy and strength. I just wanted to sleep and never wake up again. A day later, the depression is still lingering around (and probably will for a while).

It’s times like this when I start to wonder if my parents can still collect life insurance from me if I commit suicide. But for the time being, I decided instead to enjoy tonight’s lineup of Stargate and House, and go to hell with myself by ordering pizza. With extra toppings. And a chicken roll. And some cheese fires. And baked ziti.

Yep, I’m going full on Italian tonight. To heck with you all.

Tags: ahhh, alone, bleep, blown off, chicken roll, crying, dark, dating, depression, dreams, entire world, fog, Friday, God, hell, ignored, italian food, job, law school, life insurance, little time, loneliness, lonely, love, photo, pizza, prayers, romance, sobbing, stargate, suicide, tears, unanswered, union, union rep, unloved, uptown girl, wedding, wedding photo
Categories: Lincoln's Personal Log
 
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I don’t believe it. Uptown Girl actually emailed me back.

She apologized for not getting back to me sooner and wrote that she was very moved by my email. Words fail me. Words utterly fail me. I thought for SURE I was never gonna hear from her again, and to see her write this, I have to wonder if I’m being punked here.

Since then we’ve chatted on AOL, and we both agreed it was ok to take things slow. I’m thrilled because it gives me time to get my act together before we meet in real life, maybe buy some nice new clothes, and perhaps try to remember once again what it was like to behave like a gentleman. I may even have to start brushing my teeth now.

Nothing’s been set in stone yet, but this was a HUGE hurdle that’s been leapt. I practically bared my soul to her, and it didn’t seem to faze her at all. Thank you Uptown Girl.

Tags: answered, aol, clothes, email, gentleman, girl, hurdle, love, prayers, punked, uptown, uptown girl
Categories: Lincoln's Personal Log
 
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