Tag: Life

In Memoriam 2025

2025 has been a roller coaster.  As Bob Dylan would say, the times they are a-changin’.  Many great things have happened.  After four years of weakness, America is strong again.  The bad guys fear us.  We are no longer allowing Iran to develop nuclear weapons.  We once again support our greatest ally, Israel.  Inflation is down.  Gas prices are down.  Illegal border crossings are not only down, but are basically non-existent.  Crime is down and our streets are safer.  In general, things seem to be heading in the right direction.

Unfortunately, 2025 has been a year in which we lost some very great men.  These were some of the most influential people in my life.  Their loss will be felt widely, and there is a void in moral thinking that will be nearly impossible to fill.

Hulk Hogan (July 24) – The Hulkster deserves an honorable mention on this list because his influence on us was mostly through entertainment and his wrestling career.  While you may not think of Hulk Hogan as a leader in Christian thought or a great moral teacher, he did, in fact, turn his life back to Jesus in his final years.  He made this list because he articulated one of the most important and simplest messages that all of us should understand. 

On August 23, 2023, Hogan went on The Joe Rogan Experience and said that he attended and was baptized at Indian Rocks Baptist Church in Florida.  When Joe Rogan warned him against naming his church because swarms of people might show up to “go to church with the Hulkster,” Hogan said, “No.  I want more people there.”

He recognized his true purpose for being on this earth.  It happens to be the same purpose that all of us have.  As the Apostle Paul told the Ephesians in Acts 20:24, “But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.”  Ultimately, the only meaning for our lives is to spread the good news of Jesus.

Dr. James Dobson (August 21) – Dr. Dobson helped my parents raise me.  His best-selling 1970 book Dare to Disciplinewas a must-read for Christian parents in the 1970s and ‘80s.  I vividly remember watching videos of Dr. Dobson lectures on parenting and childhood in church as a kid.  What he said made sense, and he earned my respect even then. 

My dad would often tell me that “Dr. Dobson says this” when teaching me lessons about growing up.  On the advice of Dr. Dobson, he even took me on a “Preparing for Adolescence Weekend,” where we got to go stay in a hotel and do fun father-son activities while he also taught me from Dr. Dobson’s book, Preparing for Adolescence, about what to expect in those formative years of my life.  I still have the copy of the book that he gave me that weekend.

Dr. Dobson formed the juggernaut Christian organization Focus on the Family in 1977.  It became a massive multimedia empire that helped bring family values to the forefront again.  As Focus on the Family grew, it gained influence in American politics and social issues.  Now, if you search the internet for Dr. Dobson, you will find many attacks on him by people who reject the Bible.  This shows how effective he was at spreading solid, biblical values to families across our country.  He will be missed, but if more families rediscover his wisdom, our nation will be better off. 

Pastor John MacArthur (July 14) – He was the greatest biblical scholar of my lifetime, with a body of work that includes nearly 400 books.  The MacArthur Study Bible is one of the most well-regarded study Bibles around and has commentary on the entire Old and New Testaments.  It is also the Bible that I personally use and recommend.

I became familiar with John MacArthur because of a girl.  I really liked her, and she was a Christian, but she started getting into charismatic Christianity, which concerned me.  I wanted to learn more about it, so I found the book, Charismatic Chaos, by Pastor MacArthur.  I eventually lost touch with the girl, but never with John MacArthur. 

When the government tried to illegally and immorally shut down churches in 2020, he instead obeyed the Bible’s instruction from Hebrews 10:25 to “not forsake the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some,” and reopened the doors of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California for services.  I had the pleasure of hearing Pastor MacArthur preach in person.

John MacArthur was also the President of The Master’s University and the founder of The Master’s Seminary, so many other pastors and missionaries learned the Bible under his leadership and tutelage.  While his loss will leave gaps that his insights and knowledge might have bridged, much of his wisdom is fortunately still available through his writing and through his media ministry, Grace to You.  There you can find all of his sermon recordings dating back to February 9, 1969.

Charlie Kirk (September 10) – Charlie was the most effective Christian evangelist in the last decade, and he was not even a pastor.  He broke onto the scene as a political commentator and strategist at only 18 years old, when he started Turning Point USA in 2012.  He was brilliant.  He was ambitious.  When I first heard about him, he was an up-and-comer in the conservative movement.  Then, in 2020, while attending Calvary Chapel Chino Hills against tyrannical government orders, Charlie came as a guest to speak with Pastor Jack Hibbs.  I was instantly impressed.  He was not only knowledgeable about politics and our culture, but he knew God’s word.  He looked at politics the same way I do.  He realized that political wins are important, but that they would be futile and short-lived if they were not built on a strong understanding and belief in God. 

Charlie was not just a thought leader.  He was not a modern general who plans the battle and sends out orders.  He was like an old general who rode his horse to the front lines and led the charge.  Through a successful podcast and radio show he shared his message.  Through Turning Point Action, he built a massive political organization that mobilized and won elections for candidates who love freedom. 

As we all know, he also got down into the trenches of the most godless, morally bankrupt, dangerous places in our country:  college campuses.  He stood up to the intellectual brainwashing of our youth by openly speaking about both political issues and the Bible.  He was articulate.  He was courageous.  Most importantly, he was effective.  Unfortunately, this moral clarity and effectiveness led many to hate him.  As Jesus says in John 15:18, “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you.”  On September 10th, a young man, fueled by the vitriol of the left, gunned down Charlie while Charlie was speaking at one of those college events.

This will be the toughest hole to fill because he was in the prime of his life and had lots more to accomplish.  His death also left a power struggle in the conservative movement that is very dangerous.  Some bad actors are trying to push us away from biblical values and into anti-Israel positions.  Charlie would be appalled.  We need to honor him by filling that void with voices who follow the values he preached.  We also need to keep the revival going that began with his martyrdom.  Churches are seeing a swell in attendance.  This is directly related to Charlie. 

Fortunately, all of us are able to revisit Charlie’s college debate videos online.  Even I have been surprised at how many of those videos were about Jesus.  We all need to keep that in mind as we try to continue what Charlie Kirk started.

This has been a rough year for some of my most trusted voices.  These losses are on top of missing the wisdom of the great Dennis Prager, who is no longer on the radio after his spinal injury at the end of last year.  Hopefully, he will regain enough strength to share that wisdom widely again. 

We have reason for optimism about 2026 and beyond, but I wanted to acknowledge some of the great men that we lost this year and pray for people to rise up in their places.  Happy New Year!

Don’t Be Shy

Have you ever taken one of those Myers-Briggs Personality tests?  It asks you a bunch of questions and gives you a four-letter categorization of your personality based on four different characteristics.  The first trait it attempts to evaluate is whether you are an introvert (I) or an extrovert (E). The letters are not supposed to mean that one or the other is necessarily better or worse.  It is just supposed to tell people which way their personality leans.  There is, by the way, some difference between introverted and shy.  A shy person fears negative judgment by others and feels anxious in social situations, so they tend to avoid them.  An introvert is usually introspective and feels overstimulated by social situations.  They often prefer quiet, alone time to think instead of being around people.  While they are not the same, there is some overlap between shy and introverted, namely, that both will often avoid social situations.  For this reason, I believe that one possibility actually is better than the other.  I encourage you to act like an extrovert.

If you are shy, or an introvert (which I will use interchangeably from now on), please do not get defensive.  This is not an attack or even a criticism of you.  In fact, when I take the Myers-Briggs test, I am an INTP.  There is nothing wrong with being introverted.  By that, I mean that there is nothing immoral about being shy.  Someone is not a bad person because they are shy.  This is entirely a qualitative assessment, not a moral one.  I want all of us to have a higher quality of life.

What led me to this thought was a friend on social media.  You probably have some friends online whose posts make you think.  This particular friend of mine often posts stories and memes about being an introvert and trying to avoid going out and spending time with others.  They are amusing and good-natured posts, but whenever I see them, it makes me feel bad for her.  She is missing out on so much in life!

Don’t get me wrong.  Sometimes spending a night alone at home watching TV is great.  That being said, almost all of the most memorable moments in life are spent with other people.  Let’s be honest, people are interesting, and the only way to meet them is by putting yourself in a position to.  My suggestion is to seek out opportunities to go interact with people.  Join a club.  Join a team or go to sporting events.  Go to parties.  Travel and mingle with the locals.  Sing karaoke.  Don’t worry about what people might think.  Most people are too worried about what others think of them to be too critical of you.

Another great idea is to get a social job.  Many of the articles about introverts suggest that they get jobs that do not require much interaction with other people, like computer jobs or cubicle jobs.  Those articles imply that these jobs are a good idea because it fits the personality of the introvert.  The better idea is to do the opposite.  I once dated a girl who was bartending when I met her, but I soon realized was pretty shy.  She said that she got the bartending job to force herself out of her comfort zone and meet new people.  It worked, and her life was richer for doing it.  Heck, she met me.

As I said, I lean towards introversion.  It is all right if you think quietly at times.  Occasionally, someone will notice I am not being talkative and will ask what is wrong.  Most of the time, nothing is wrong and I am contemplating some deep issue of life, or some idea for an article for this blog.  Being contemplative is perfectly fine.  I am not suggesting you have to constantly be the loud, crazy, life of the party.  Thinking before you speak or act is usually a good idea.  People see the strong, silent type in a positive way for good reason.  That being said, never let your feelings stop you from fully experiencing life.

The movie Yes Man with Jim Carrey is a fun, silly film, but it helped me to this realization.  In the movie, Jim Carrey hears a motivational speaker who tells him to say “yes” to every opportunity that presents itself.  When he does, he begins to thrive and succeed in many areas of life because he is putting himself in the position to do so, when previously he never would have had those chances.  Of course, you can’t say “yes” to everything, and eventually, he figures that out, but the principle of being open to more opportunities is a good one. 

My general rule is that if somebody suggests that we do something or go somewhere, as long as it is not immoral, I will say yes.  If a friend calls and wants to go out, say yes.  If somebody invites you on a trip, go.  If you don’t feel like going, ignore that feeling!  It will make your life fuller.

Now, I am going to follow my own advice.  Instead of watching the rest of the baseball playoff games here in my hotel room, I am going to head out to a sports bar in Phoenix to watch.  Maybe I will meet some new people and some fun adventures will ensue!

Give Us the Same Courtesy That We Gave You

The first paragraph of this article is here for a very specific reason. To promote the article on social media I had to make sure that there was no political speech in the first couple of lines so that it wouldn’t be censored. The original started here:

Democrats now control the White House and both chambers of Congress.  They are calling for unity, but what they mean by that is, “Now everybody needs to agree with us.”  That is not going to happen.  I am not saying that in an obstinate way.  I’m just being realistic and honest.  People disagree and that is alright.  Republicans were in charge for the last four years and many people disagreed with them, and I expected that as well because that is how life works. 

This leads me to my one request to Democrats.  Now that you’re in charge please give us the same courtesy that we gave to you when we were.  That courtesy is this:  When people disagree with you, don’t force them to do what you want. 

This may surprise some of you after being told by the media for four years that President Trump was a fascist dictator, but I cannot think of anything that he forced us to do during his term.  If you disagreed with President Trump and the Republicans, they did not make you do anything against your will.  Republicans let people agree to disagree.  

If, for example, you disagreed with the tax cuts that were passed, Republicans did not force you to go along with it.  They implemented no penalties for people who wanted to keep paying the higher tax rates voluntarily.  Yes, you can do that.  Surprisingly, wealthy Democrats who complain that rich people don’t pay their fair share do not opt to pay more themselves when given that choice.  Alright, maybe not so surprisingly.

Ultimately, this is the main thing that Republicans want:  to be left alone.  We want to control our own lives and let others control theirs.  Another example; we may understand that homosexuality is immoral, but we do not block people from the practice.  In fact, the Trump administration started a global effort to end the criminalization of homosexuality.  (In contrast, Democrats kowtow to countries like Iran who put homosexuals to death.)  Republicans also disagree with divisive groups like Antifa and Black Lives Matter, yet do not want them prevented from speaking or kicked off of social media.  Another Republican belief is that God is central to the American way of life and necessary for our success, but we do not want to require church attendance.  In other words, Republicans would like everybody to act in particular ways but think that people should be free to choose for themselves.

This approach is not a new one.  It is actually one of the principles that our country was established on.  Our Founding Fathers were wise men who understood that people would not always agree as to what should be done.  They also knew that throughout history, when the powerful forced those who disagreed with them to conform to their will it sowed contempt, division and conflict.  Their solution was liberty.  If one group wants to do “A” and another group wants to do “B,” the answer is not to have the group in power force the other group to do what they command.  Instead, the first group can do “A” and the second group can do “B.”  They can try to use persuasion to win the other side over but they should not use coercion.

If Joe Biden really wants unity this is what he should do.  Refrain from taking away our liberty.  Allow people to have free will and do what they think is best for themselves.  He can disagree with our choices but he should not overrule them.  Here are ten great suggestions that the Democrats can do to respect the liberty of Americans:

  1. If you decide to raise taxes, make it optional to pay the old rate like the Republicans did for you. 
  2. If you want people to wear masks, make it optional like the Republicans did.
  3. Let scared restaurant owners who want to shut down do so, and let the ones who want to remain open choose to do that.  If patrons want to show up they can but if they are afraid they should also be free to stay home.
  4. Let churches decide whether to remain open or close down.  If congregants do not want to attend they should not be forced to, but those who do should be allowed in.
  5. President Trump stopped enforcement of the Johnson Amendment, which threatens to take away tax-exempt status from churches if the pastor endorses a political candidate.  Continue with that policy and allow pastors to decide for themselves what to say from the pulpit without threat of retaliation from the government.
  6. If somebody wants health insurance that covers pregnancy and drug rehabilitation they should be allowed to purchase it.  If another person wants less expensive insurance that does not cover those things they should be allowed to choose that.  If someone else prefers to pay out of pocket for medical care instead of buying insurance they should be able to do that.
  7. Do not force law abiding citizens to buy guns.  Likewise, do not prohibit them from buying guns.
  8. If someone wants to do a job for $8 per hour, do not prohibit them from doing so and force them out of a job.  Let people decide for themselves what wage to accept.
  9. Do not force people who are against murdering babies to pay for the murder of babies.  Do not use taxpayer money for Planned Parenthood.
  10. Refrain from banning or restricting us from using certain products like incandescent light bulbs, straws, grocery bags, soda, and shower heads with good water pressure.

These are all things that Democrats have tried to dictate in the past.  If they truly want unity this list would be a solid first step.  Instead of using tyrannical power to control those of us who disagree with them, try going back to our founding vision of liberty.  It’s the least they can do after Republicans did it for them the last four years.