Kit-Kat Clock

Stay tuned for the rest of the Bayless Kit Kat Clocks...

why?

Why is there so much fear and so much need for control among Christians? I think it's because we plain just don't understand God's love. So we talk about "true" vs. "false" conversions, we attack any branch of the church that has a different teaching, we question other people's salvation. What I especially notice are those folks who seem to think that if you haven't reduced someone to a quivering mass of repentant weeping - if you haven't scared the person to death with talk of hell - then you haven't really shared the Gospel. Excuse me?
Sure, Jesus gave hellfire and damnation speeches. To the religious leaders. Not to the prostitutes.
I think we've got 2 problems here. People don't get God's love, and people, including pastors, don't read the entire Bible. In my theology class last summer, my professor asked how many of us students (all either involved in ministry or planning to be involved in ministry) had read the entire Bible. Less than half the class raised their hands.
When we skip reading the entire Bible, we get these weird skewed images of God, like the image of God as a genocidal terrorist. Or the image of God as a man. We miss out on the persistent, constant message of God's love, a message which runs like an undercurrent, and sometimes like a tsunami, through every story, every book, every verse of the Bible.
Maybe if we spent more time with God and with God's word, we would learn about God's love. Then we would share that. Right now, I think a lot of people are just sharing their own personal fears about God and calling it Truth.

Like and Unlike

So I've noticed that Duchess, although very different from her older brothers, is also very similar to them.
Duchess, like Pipsqueak, eats every meal as if she hadn't eaten in 3 days.
Duchess, unlike Pipsqueak, is not ornery.
Duchess, like Shadow, is willing and able to verbally express her displeasure or impatience.
Duchess, unlike Shadow, will remain in your lap even when you sneeze, cough, or laugh loudly.
Duchess, like Pipsqueak, is extremely interested in human food.
Duchess, unlike Pipsqueak, can be restrained while we are eating human food. (When Pip was her size I had to shut him in the bathroom when I ate: he would literally drag food off my plate).
Duchess, like Shadow, tells you exactly what part of her head to scratch.
Duchess, unlike Shadow, likes to meet new people.

Happy Anniversary and Where Does That Go?

Today Dale and I celebrate 3 years of marriage. Yay! I think we'll celebrate by going out to dinner and then coming home and doing homework. Seriously. Students sure know how to have a rocking good time...

In other news, Duchess saw the vet today. She's a whopping 2.9 pounds now and healthy. She did very well, although she was quite displeased with the temperature taking and the fecal sampling. Fortunately all signs are healthy and she curled up in my lap and purred when we got home, so I think all was forgiven. She's back to the vet in a month for final shots, including rabies, and then we'll be spaying her around Thanksgiving time. What fun for her! Shadow seems pretty ok with her now, although he does hiss every time she pounces on his tail. Who can blame him? Pip is gaining weight again. I suspect he is eating Shadow's food which is on the high bookshelf. This would be the same food he flat out refused to eat for days last week. Grrr. In short, all is normal in Catland.

Interview with Cats

Pipsqueak, last week you stopped eating. Was that a hunger strike to protest the new kitten? Or was it just time for a change in food?
"It was a little of both. I felt it was time for a change in my nutritional conveyance, and I also strongly objected to the kitten. It was just the right action at the right time."
Shadow, when you first met Duchess you were terrified of her. Now you stand your ground. When did you realize that Duchess was NOT a bloodthirsty killer kitten?
"I think it was when I observed her chasing her own tail repeatedly."
Duchess, what's your favorite part of life at the Bayless home?
"I really love chasing my tail, but my favorite part of life has to be my sneak attacks on the other cats. I think they really like it too."
Pipsqueak, do you and Duchess play together?
"Not really, but sometimes she comes out of nowhere and jumps on me. That's really annoying. And she's always trying to eat my food."
Shadow, do you feel you and Duchess are developing a healthy relationship?
"Define healthy."

Plucking out an Eye

So I was reading in Matthew today the passage when Jesus says that if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. And of course my first thought was the typical thought of: "well, Jesus was just exaggerating for effect. Jesus didn't really want anyone to pluck out their eye." Which is accurate. But then I had a second thought: why did Jesus use such shocking graphic language? What was the point? I thought of a couple of things. First: Jesus wanted to point out that removing the root cause of sin from our lives requires radical and extreme measures. Second: Jesus wanted us to understand that it would be painful. Removing the root cause of sin from our lives can often seem like self-mutilation. Ouch!

Precious car-stealing kitten

Well, I came home the other evening to see this sweet sight: little Duchess sitting on her daddy's lap while he played a video game. (The game is Grand Theft Auto). Dale reports that Duchess was very interested in the car-jacking.