I received an email today – as I do many times during the course of the week – from a family member who must be convinced the we see the world in the same way.  I am sure that many of you have someone that prowls your email this way.  Based on some skewed version of reality, or just based on the fact that you are in his or her address book, you get email forwards hammering away at some political or ideological principle.  Maybe this principle perfectly jives with your worldview, but I find that this is rarely the case.  I am also stunned that my family might think that spam is the best way to get in touch with me. Nonetheless, I get emails.  Here is one that I wanted to share, because I think it has some points to discuss:

Dear Dale,

In a powerful new message, Pastor Doug exposed gay marriage as one of the greatest threats to our families, culture, and civilization. New laws pressing for homosexual marriages to be recognized and protected with all the rights and privileges of traditional marriages are springing up around the country. Pastor Doug explains, “Jesus said this phenomenon would be one of the most obvious signs of the end!”

He warns, “Our families are under a full-blown attack. If we as Christians do not speak out now regarding this abomination, judgment will soon be at our doors!” (See Luke 17:28-30.)

Watch the video and PLEASE FORWARD THIS LINK to all of your friends. Especially those in California, whose state government is leading the charge on behalf of gay marriage.

Finally, don’t forget to pray for the Amazing Adventure series, which begins this Friday, September 12! If our kids ever needed the Lord … they do now! Visit www.amazingfactskids.org today to learn how you can still be a part of this event!

I left all of the formatting because I think that If I have to deal with it, so should you.  I have a lot to think about on the issue of gay marriage, and I would certainly like to talk to some homosexual couples about it, as I haven’t had a chance to discuss it with anyone that would actually be directly affected by the issue.  I did, however, read a quote the other day that I think is appropriate:

Archbishop Desmond Tutu has accused the Anglican church of allowing its “obsession” with homosexuality to come before real action on world poverty.

“God is weeping” to see such a focus on sexuality and the Church is “quite rightly” seen by many as irrelevant on the issue of poverty, he said.

ht – on the journey

Wow.  How true is that?  Perhaps we take our eye off the ball.  Perhaps the world is plagued with evil, and that evil is extreme poverty, hunger and famine, HIV and Aids, diseases, war, or oppression and tyranny.  Perhaps we tackle the issues that are sure to ring the bell of the people who support us.

I heard another speaker talk about the presence of God int he world.  He said that he asked God “Where were you when these awful things were happening to the world?'”  And God’s answer was “I might ask you the same question.”

Maybe we were in committee meetings planning the best way to influence legislation and sway the vote.  I think that Archbishop Tutu has a point.  I think that God weeps, and I think that we shoudl focus on the more important issues facing our world today.