The Religious Freedom Restoration Act is in the news causing much confusion for people of faith and those that have taken a different route. I am not surprised by the confusion stirred up in the wake of Indiana’s decision to proclaim a “Religious Freedom” law.
 I’m confused.
Freedom of religion was guaranteed by our founding fathers when they penned the First Amendment to our Constitution. More recently US Code 2000bb-1 “Free exercise of religion protected” states-
” Government shall not substantially burden a person’s exercise of religion even if the burden results from a rule of general applicability, except as provided in subsection (b) of this section.”
Now you can go on to read subsection (b) if you desire to accomplish two goals, a) more confusion and b) a headache.
Our religious freedom is the most precious freedom that we have as citizens of the United States of America. It should never be taken lightly. It should be fought for without abandonment.  It should be cherished amounts our greatest possessions. It should be recognized as a gift from a loving God; the same God that allowed mankind to make choices, even when those choices exclude the Gift Giver.
I love this nation and the principles that serve as its foundation. I love that I can worship the God that I want to without fear of persecution. I love that I can tell others about my God without fear of incarceration or even death.
I love that in the wake of Indiana’s passing of an unneeded law people are again thinking about this incredible freedom.
Which brings me to what I really wanted to write about—
If you are a person of faith…do you understand what declaring your faith really means?
By way of a hypothetical I will venture further into this question in the light of the uproar over this unneeded law.
You are the owner of an Event Planning Service. You are a person of faith, a person that believes in God. You celebrate your faith by worshiping God, not only at Easter and Christmas, but every day of your life. You have committed your life and your work to honor God.
Now you know who you are.
One Monday morning two people enter into your humble shop. Upon greeting them you discover that they are there to solicit your services for an upcoming wedding. Your experienced eye tells you that these will be good customers. The garments they wear aren't off the rack. They are groomed impeccably. You glance out the large window of your shop and see only one car parked in front; an automobile that costs more than your own annual income.
Yes, these will be great customers.
After exchanging names and handshakes you hand them a clipboard that holds a questionnaire designed to gather general information. You tell them that while they are filling out the paperwork you will retrieve albums that will aid them in their decision making.
When you return the gentleman on the right hands you back the clipboard, smiling, ready to get on with business.
 You glance at the names written down-
The word “Bride” has been crossed out. Neatly penned above the crossed out word your customer has written “Groom-2”
In the space provided he has written his name.
In the space below provided for the “Groom” is written the other man’s name.
One space has been left blank-“Budget $________”
An unsettling feeling overcomes you as your realize that standing before you is a gay couple!
An express train of thoughts speeds through your mind—
“They are gay. This is wrong. I cannot help them do something that I know is wrong. I don’t know what to say to them. They need to go somewhere else. Some place that doesn't recognize that what they are doing is a sin. What do I say to them? Dear God, please give me the words and courage to send them away.”
“I am sorry,” you begin, “I don’t think I can help you with your…plans.”
The man on the left glances at the man on the right, “You neglected to fill in the budget again! Help this man. He needs to know how much we are going to spend before he can help us.”
The man on the right looks at you, “Is that it? You need to know our budget before you can help. Well that is refreshing. We have been to three other event planners that refused to help because we are not…traditional.”
“It’s not that…” you begin.
“Our budget is set between $90,000 and $100,000. If we go over a little I will be okay. But I trust that with the early revealing of our budget, you will be able to accommodate us.”
The express train ramps up again-
“A hundred thousand dollars! That is more than I made last year. That is life changing money. What do I do? I don’t believe in what they are doing. With that kind of money we could finally start a college fund for Joey. God, please give me guidance! What we could do with that kind of money! What will my wife think when I tell her I said no? God, please bless my decision…”
You look at the two men. The silence, your silence, fills the room.
You tell them, “I think…”
What do you tell them? Is there a price on your faith? Where is the line, if there is one, drawn?
A life changing decision?
We, as people of faith, must look at the whole truth. If our truth has “holes” in it, are we prepared to mend those holes with or own freedom? Or do we say “What’s just one hole? What does one compromise mean to God?
I wonder…did God ever compromise?

God Did That

I have a secret that most of you probably don’t know about—I enjoy talking to evolutionist. Not just talking, I receive great pleasure from exploring their thought process. It’s fun. I have learned not to try and debate them about the flaws in their theories…they are simply incapable of speaking and listening during a conversation. If I point out a flaw they simply repeat what they said, sometimes rearranging their words as if some mystical power lies in the order of speech, ignoring whatever input I had in the conversation.

For years I attempted this technique before realizing the flaws in my own approach. And then one sunny winter day when the world was moving slowly allowing for clear thought, a new, and as it turns out flawless response evolved out of thin air.

Three words—God did that.

I have discovered that even the most devoted Neo-Darwinist cannot respond with a well thought out retort to my statement—God did that.

If the Evolutionist is spouting off about evolutionary fluctuations among birds, finches seem to be their favorite; I do not challenge their theory. I simply reply God did that.

When the student of evolution is bold enough to approach the subject of Gradualism, quoting one of their hero’s, Ernst Mayr, “All evolution is due to the accumulation of small genetic changes”,  I simply reply-God did that.

If this same narrow-minded evolutionist proudly describes the Baldwin Effect, a ridiculous principle stating that behavior will somehow gradually reshape genetic profiles, I reply—God could do that too!

Sometimes this miniature Darwin wanna-be will even spout off about Mechanisms of Selection. Belief in this nonsense must be a prerequisite of entering the Evolutionist Society Club. This Mechanisms of Selection also allows the Darwin wanna-be to shore up their next argument about choice and homosexuality. Sexual Selection is defined as an adaptation where sexual partners are chosen based on specific and uncontrollable cues. You know my response—“God did that…He created man and woman and choice (freewill). The student almost inevitably will scratch their head after my reply, trying to determine if I just agreed with them or not.

Big Bang—“God did that.”

Bottom dwelling single cell scum to intelligent life form— “God did that”

Dinosaurs—“God did that.”

Ice age—“God did that.”

Global warming…well—“Gore did that one”

It doesn’t matter what the Evolutionist says or believes because…”God did that!”

Next time you run across one these Mal-informed thinkers, have some fun. Limit your words, your retorts, your debates, to these three simple words. And then tell them you are practicing an economy of words…they will love you even more.