It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

UPDATE - For the sake of expediency I have published these thoughts without having fully edited them to make it "flow" better. I'm still embarking on this whole Christmas/Advent thought process and with Christmas just days away, I wanted to make sure to get this fledged out. I apologize if this appears to be a jumbled mess of writing and preachiness, I tried really hard to not make it that. But as I wrote out my thoughts I started to make sense of some of it and make conclusions. I write this more for me and myself than to appear to being "preachy" to you. I hope you enjoy it and I pray that this will continue to make your days merry and bright as we celebrate the birth of the greatest man who ever lived, the Savior of Mankind. Merry Christmas!!!



Been thinking more about this Christmas story and the fact that Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year. Last time focused on the shepherds and their comparisons to us. The normal mundane human going about their day-to-day job and yet God brings down his glory to the shepherds, to us. And their response to it compared to what our response is. One comment left by a reader mentioned their “scrooge mood” response to Christmas and how it has changed somewhat as a result of the post. And I feel that is the best comment someone has ever left me. It bums me out that Evangelicals allow the world and its systems to “bum them out.” To let it seep into their very fabric and being and sap the glory of God from their lives. Don’t get me wrong, I’m guilty of it too. But at the expense of advocating CEO Christianity (Christmas and Easter Only) it is at Christmas and Easter that Christians should be at their peak of revelry and fun.

Both are doctrinal tenets of the faith but both are clouded in mystery and mysticism. Incarnate, Infinite God taking on the form of a helpless new born babe, being entrusted to the care and provision of humanity. The same humanity that if they have proven anything, it’s that we screw things up, actually, we screw everything up. Incarnate, Infinite God dying with the weight of the world on his shoulders, only to show His Incarnate and Infinite Godship by rising from the dead. All to rescue our screwed up humanity.

But Easter doesn’t carry the “scrooge” effect with Christians. There isn’t the commercialism and consumerism attached to Easter as there is with Christmas. Easter has been hijacked, but Christmas gets the negative connotation. I’d like to diffuse that. I had to start with myself and begin to embrace Christmas some years ago and everything around it. As well as put a renewd focus on the Christmas story and see where it applies nowadays.

So I have continued this thought with the story of the wise men.

First things first. I know people like to harp on the fact that in the nativity scenes around the world, there are 3 wise men represented for the 3 gifts brought to Jesus. More than likely, it wasn’t 3 individual wise men on their own. It was a massive caravan of hundreds and they probably met up with Jesus and the family as much as a year or two after his birth. These trivial issues behind us, let’s continue.

Most times the focus of the wise men is the gifts. Gold, frankincense, and myrrh. The King, the Priest, and the Sacrifice. Or the focus is on the mystical journey these wise men embarked on and how that applies to our life. The fact that there was this spiritual force in play put in action by God to turn the cosmos to get these wise men from afar to follow a moving star to the boondocks of Bethlehem. We feel this sometimes in our own lives. That there is a spiritual force at work and all things are linked together someway, somehow. It’s all been contrived and set in motion to arrive to this one moment. And we are left scratching our head sometimes when we realize it. How did that just happen? Sometimes God will move the whole universe for you to experience him.

But there’s another element to this story I’ve been contemplating.

It seems that everyone wants to talk about the story behind Christmas. To give life to all the central characters and share in the secret they were able to discover. All the big bookstores have displays setup to sell books that speak about Christmas. To give you the meaning behind Christmas. To maybe provide more depth and understanding to the cast of characters. Most of these books are conjecture on the part of the author. Sprinkling in real life with some historical perspective with some just good old fashioned writing. All to entertain you and warm your hearts. Well, I want to explore this secret. A secret that not a lot of people think literally about, but if you think literally about it, it will change your life so dramatically you’ll never be the same. And it’s all based around the story of the wise men. We can still see the bumper stickers that say “Wise men still seek Jesus.” Well, we still have to seek him and it’s interesting where we can find him. To give you a hint, I’d almost call this, “Why I stick with the Church 3” because if you can grasp this you’ll look at people and church differently.

The wise men blazed this path and discovered something about the way God works. They were lead somewhat mystically to “The King of the Jews” but stopped along the way to still ask “Where is the King of the Jews.” A lot of people are asking that even now a days, Where is Jesus? While we can’t discover it in the same way the wise men did we can still discover it and act on it.

Ever seen pictures of Jerusalem? Israel? Bethlehem maybe? How do those compare to Hawaii or Ireland, or Bermuda? Israel is chalky white and cold hard concrete. Not a pretty place. Not very “green.” Why in the world would God show up there? I’ve been to Cancun and Cancun looks a lot better then Israel. Israel looks like the backside of the world. Why not show up in Rome, the capital of the known world?

Jesus comes to this place with no pomp and circumstance. Sure there's the big party in heaven, but what of the earth? His mom was a teenager, who wasn’t married to his earthly dad. Despite the picture, she is probably walking, not on a donkey like the Hallmark card’s show. They were dirty, knocking on everyone’s door looking for a place to stay. Started at the Hampton Inn, then went to the Motel 6, then the Econo Lodge, then the hourly motel and then the truck stop, and then the rest area, and finally someone says, "hey I have an old Chevy in my garage and behind there is a cot if you wanna stay there."

Where’s the pomp? Where’s the circumstance? Instead, it’s the smell of animals and stubble and hay and fleas and birth. All those smells and earth and dust of travel mixed together.

And isn’t that just like God? So humble to hide one of the greatest events of all time.

This is the birth of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords and it’s hidden in a shed. We’ve come up with all kinds of King James words to make it grand. He was born in a manger. He was born in a stable. Stable makes it sound permanent. But if we say he was born in a shed, in a barn, next to dung, they laid him in a dog dish that was big enough for all the animals to eat out of is crazy…just crazy.

He was so hidden and tucked away in earthiness, that some of the wisest men in all the world had to stop and ask for directions. These guys were waiting for this. They had put their money where their mouth was. They know it is happening and they go out searching for him, “traveling afar” and he’s so hidden that they have to ask the leader of the Jews where the King of the Jews is and he doesn’t even know. He so doesn’t know that he says to an entourage of hundreds of brilliant people, be sure to look hard for him. He’s hidden. Trying to find a needle in a hay-stack.

But they do find him, lead by divine providence. They see him, leave their precious gifts, depart, and our mystically lead again to not return to Herod. So that is their story.

What is ours?

Where is Jesus?

Is he hidden in the stuff of the earth?

Yes he is.

And you know what stuff he is hidden in?

You and Me!!!

Now, I don’ think we go to each other and fall down and worship each other. But I can be a blessing to Jesus by being a blessing to any one of you. Just as I can persecute Jesus by persecuting anyone of you. Jesus even implicates Paul this way at his conversion.

Here is why I go to church?

I get to see Jesus. He dresses up like Jeff and like Matt and like Corey. And he is visible in the eyes of every person there. He hid himself in you and me. I see him in Jeff, I see him in Matt, I see him in Corey. And he likes looking at himself. And that is why he put himself in both Corey and me. So now when the 2 of us look at each other, Jesus, goes “man I’m good looking.” And he’s not ego-maniacal because he is God and he’d be idolatrous if he didn’t think that.

This is the Christian ethic for loving one another. It’s why Mother Theresa could take care of dying people and orphans in Calcutta. I think she was looking for Jesus in each and everyone of them. Ministering to them like they were Jesus.

Christmas and the magi path is a wonderful story and I think if we’re wise we are still going to seek him. And one of the ways we discover him is in the lives of each other. The way I treat any of you is the way I am treating Jesus. This is the reason for us to go to church. Maybe I get there first so Jesus can walk on a snow free path to church. Then maybe Corey gets their early and he’s playing some drums getting ready because he’s going to play to Jesus who’s out in the congregation getting ready to worship Jesus. I’m not trying to take this to a tripped-out new age level and saying were all divine. But the logical conclusion of Jesus being in you and me is that we get to love Jesus by loving each other, and if we seek him through this mystical journey and find Jesus in one another, the world wouldn’t know what to do with us.

We should be ministering to each other. Bring gifts to Jesus by bringing gifts to each other. Being a blessing to each other to be a blessing to Jesus in each of us. Respond to the Savior inside of us, not to what comes out of our mouths. And allow yourself to be real and transparent enough for them to see Jesus in you and to allow others to be a blessing to you. Let people minister to you and be a blessing to you. Our own pride or fear can get in the way and we run away from help. But let it be done for you.

I hear all the time from people, “Why does everyone give me a present for Christmas, it’s Jesus birthday anyway?”

Well you know why I give presents?

Because it’s Jesus birthday and you’re his body and so I’m going to give you the ugly tie with the lit up palm tree, because I want to. I love you and I love Jesus inside of you.

M E R R Y C H R I S T M A S

Sick

The whole household. Seth has an ear and eye infection. Michele got a bit of the flu and I seemed to have gotten the middle ground. A high fever (101.3) and the aches and pains but at least I could keep food down. But talk about feeling helpless. I'm trying to be this big tough guy dad male macho and I'm watching my family travail in sickness and unable to do anything. I could barely pick Seth up and carry him to Michele when he needed to eat. But I'd feel 100% guilty if Michele went to get him herself, never knowing when she'd need to run down the hall to....well you know.

So that is why I was MIA Tuesday and Wednesday.

So here is a quick run down.

I lost this week in Fantasy Football, so I am playing for 3rd place. Which still results in winning money.

And no Last 5 this week and there will be none until after the new year.

Matter of fact, things will be very light around here until after the New Year. I have some posts already done and just waiting for me to hit "publish" so you'll get those and I'll let you know very quickly what happen this weekend to my fantasy team, but that's about all you'll get from me after Friday.

What Really Matters

Liberty is Brewing

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

"In the air, there's a feeling of Christmas"

Kind of makes you wonder what all the hub-bub is about.

Yesterday I made my annual pilgrimage out to the local malls and shops to do some Christmas shopping. And try not to laugh, but I actually like shopping at Christmas time. At no other time of the year can Michele even come close to getting me excited to want to go shopping. But, come Christmas time, I go with her when I need to and I always make one trip on my own.

As I said, last night I ended up not getting home until nearly 10 after shopping 2 malls, a couple other strip mall locations, and a Meijer. And I enjoyed it...all of it. As I wrote the same thing this time last year, I love everything about Christmas. And I thing it has something to do with the fact that Christmas never changes. Same decorations, same songs, same story, etc. But I got to thinking yesterday about all of this.....

What's the big deal?

Trees all over the world, wreaths on doors, whole neighborhoods full off lights.

What’s the deal? It’s just a birthday right?

Christmas is more than just a day that Santa supposedly comes and it’s more than the day we max out our credit cards. It’s a day set aside each year to celebrate the birth of our King and Messiah Jesus Christ. We celebrate him because he is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. He is the greatest man that has ever been and still is the greatest man that has ever been. In fact he is so powerful that he was born of a virgin and lived a perfect and sinless life, teaching of his Kingdom, using stories to explain that Kingdom and how it works. And then he did the ultimate thing. He was beaten and flogged for us. Nailed to a cross, gasping for breath and of a broken heart, breathed his last breath and died for our sins. And of course, 3 days later, rose from the dead declaring himself both Savior and God for all of eternity. Because of that he is available to us today. The Bible says whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

That’s why there are wreaths hanging around. That’s why we have Christmas trees. That’s why we have carols. That’s what the hub-bub is about.

And when you compare our hub-bub nowadays to this miracle, how does it measure up? How does all the pomp and circumstance and energy exerted nowadays compare to the same of the original day? Specifically, to the Sheppards response on the actual day?

Of all the people in the Christmas story, the sheppards are probably the most like us. Normal blue-collar people who we know very little about. We don’t know their names or where they are from or even exactly what it was they were doing in the field (watching over their flocks…what does that mean). Kind of like us.

But God interrupts all that normal and mundane. A heavenly host, the glory of the Lord all around in the middle of the night. The deep, dark midnight sky fully bright and fully alive with the same glory that Moses had to hide his face from.

BOOM!!!!

There it is.

What did they do with it?

They were told all this truth, but did not sit around in the field and just talk about and converse about these deep spiritual truths that the angels told them. And that happens a lot at Christmas. The theology is extremely important in the Christmas season. 100% God and 100% man and both are necessary for salvation. But we can talk about Christmas in such deep ways that we don’t really experience it too much. We get too wrapped in the teaching about.

Just the same we can make it too much of a pageant. Dress up in costumes and turn on all kinds of twinkling lights. But the Sheppard’s didn’t really pull out some wreaths and garland in celebration. One Sheppard didn’t reach down, pull of his sock and tell everyone his crazy idea of hanging that sock from a fireplace and having some fat old elf stuff it full of toys. That’s not what they did.

What they did, is get up from where they were and went to the party of Jesus birth. Quite the invitation!!

They got up and went and saw it with their own eyes. And the Bible says when they saw it, they went out telling EVERYBODY what they saw. We have carols that we sing to tell everyone about the fact that the sheppards went and told everyone what they saw at the party. Wouldn’t it be cool if we could have gone to the party? Wouldn't it be cool if we told EVERYBODY about the invitation we've all been given?

And?

Who cares?

Does it even matter anymore?

40 years ago a highly anticipated report was released that was supposed to put to the rest the controversy and questions surrounding the assignation of the President of the United States. 40 years later, no one knows anything. The Warren Commission report was supposed to put to the rest the assassination of JFK. Instead it left it wide open.

Similarly, the Mitchell report will be released today and its purpose is to put to the rest the issue of Steroids within MLB.

Well whoopdee do.

Does anyone even care by now?

People are more curious about the “80 players” that will be named in the report. It’s a curiosity thing more than it is a caring thing.

Alex Rodriguez?

Pudge Rodriguez?

Gary Sheffield?

Roger Clemens?

Randy Johnson?

If those names appear what’s going to happen to the sport of baseball?

Nothing.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m going to be sure to be at my computer at 2pm today when the report drops on the public. I want to see all the names too. But this isn’t like the Black Sox scandal of 1919. This isn’t guys “throwing a game” This isn’t Pete Rose betting on a game he is competing and/or managing. I know, I know, Pete Rose admits to gambling on baseball, admits to gambling on the Reds, but he never gambled against the Reds, or so he says. The integrity of the game has been tarnished, but none of us go to a baseball game and are suspicious the outcome has been “fixed.” We just expect to see a home run every inning.

Big Deal….right?

I’ve said it here before, so I won’t waste anymore of your time except to say this is a glorified book report. The issue of steroids is a bummer to baseball fans, no doubt about it. I don't like it. Bonds is an a-hole, that’s why he gets beat up the most. But he’ll make the Hall of Fame. McGwire? Probably won’t make it. But steroids aren’t a moral issue like the media wants to make it.

What we have is a great Oliver Stone script. Just as Oliver spent 3 hours presenting every freakin nuance of the JFK assassination, he has all the makings of a great 3 hour extravaganza making a mockery of a National Pastime.

Think about what this whole story has. Drugs? Check. Good guys? Check. Bad Guys? Check. A shady gray area between the Good guys and Bad guys? Check. A suspect leader? Check. We have speculation, conspiracy, back door shenanigans, and cover-ups. We have old pictures as possible evidence. We have interviews and taped testimony. We have (unfortunately) death and deceit. We have a massive investigation. We have a hyped media. We have one person who is the sole “patsy” of the witch hunt, and we have a slew of characters that have a shade of suspicion around them. And now we have a book report. A year and a half in the making that the public is waiting with bated breath to view. And all it will do is confirm what we all already knew……

Which is what?

The Last 5....(12.12.07)

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.

The Last 5 (the I cannot believe no one left any comments from the last The Last 5 that had all the hilarious You Tube clips)

.... Songs played in shuffle mode on my MP3 Player

• The Doors - L.A. Woman
• The Who - Pinball Wizard
• U2 - Vertigo
• Third Eye Blind - Semi-Charmed Life
• The Wallflowers - One Headlight

.... Blog entries I read

• Agent Zero (I kind of find Gil entertaining)
• Always good to get a player's perspective, especially when it is articulated very well
• Way to go "Florida Quarterback!"
• Just a way to keep up on some of the Big 10 stuff going on.
• Not really a blog, but you can go this website everyday and get new and exciting information.

.... Videos from You Tube

I think you forget how much we actually domintaed the Lakers in Game 5 of the Finals in 2004


these next two are pretty sweet




40 years ago, people were concerned about the "consumerism" of Christmas, and so some people made a cartoon about it.....priceless



So if that is the meaning, watch the movie. This is one of the few movies actually worth your time. Check out the trailer if you haven't seen the movie.

Fantasy Football Playoffs Round 1 Update

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.

Nothing serious, I had a bye week, of course my team blew up for over 160 points(Favre, Grant, Lendale, Addai, Jags Defense....no way was I going to play the Pitt D against New England) and I have to play against freaking Tom Brady and the Patriots D for a 3rd time this year.

UGH!!!

Now, I have beaten that team twice already by a combined 13.5 points too. So, I know he can be beat, but it is really hard to beat a team 3 times, especially when they have Tom Brady.

Is there any doubt that Brady will have 5 td passes in the 1st half alone?

None the less, I anticpate a good game from my squad and plan on playing for all the marbles next week.

Anyone going to try and Do the Opposite next year?


Paid for by the committee to get you to Do the Opposite at your next Fantasy Football Draft.

Conservative Christian - A Prologue

UPDATE: This is a prologue to the series of posts I mentioned a couple weeks ago that I have been composing on Christianity and the Conservative movement. I have really been thinking about this whole "Conservative Christian" moniker people like to throw around. And the more I wrote this prologue and wrote the next 3 posts in the series, the more I am finding it harder and harder to see the connection. Why is the prologue and why do the next 3 posts seem so different? Maybe you the reader will see something, but as I wrote the prologue and the subsequent follow-ups, I took a turn somewhere. None the less, know that I am going to publish the whole series (on Mondays) just as I have written them.



There are many conservatives who would like to return to the era of frequent public executions, even hangings. In fact, conservatives are generally united in strong support for the death penalty, a fact the liberal media enjoys equating with the election of George W. Bush as President, since as Governor of Texas, Bush presided over record numbers of executions. It is anecdotally said that Bush faced opposition to the death penalty from his mother, wife and daughters, but never flinched, even in the case of Karla Faye Tucker, an obviously rehabilitated evangelical Christian.

I support the death penalty. People like Ted Bundy and Timothy McVeigh deserved nothing less. As a Christian, I believe it is taught in scripture and I have no doubt that Jesus would have supported it. If I served on a jury, I would express my support for the death penalty without embarrassment.

Having said all that, I am uneasy with the current conservative posture on the death penalty. Not with the position, but with the posture; with our approach to the application of the issue. But it isn’t just the death penalty, it’s a lot of things that our “posture” is a problem within the “Conservative Christian” movement. The death penalty premise is an easier subject to express posture versus position. I know we are talking about human life, but the death penalty isn’t a “sticky” subject. At least I think it isn’t in relative terms to Immigration, Iraq war, Abortion, Homosexual Rights, Healthcare, etc.

Let me be clear about one thing. I do not believe we should question the death penalty as a way of making conservatism or Christianity "kinder" or "compassionate." If someone thinks that conservatism is cruel, they don't understand liberalism, which is tyranny masquerading as compassion. The Biblical admonitions that support capital punishment are presented as a way of properly valuing and respecting the fact that human beings are made in the image of God. It's not presented as a way to torture the guilty, but to remind the rest of us that people aren't like anything else in creation. I don't expect liberals to appreciate that, since they reject the Judeo-Christian worldview and its emphasis on the sacredness of human life. Note how liberals can't see why we oppose abortion yet support capital punishment.

No, my reconsideration is based on two factors: my enthusiastic belief in limited government, and my commitment to the idea of genuine, objective truth. Sad to say, I believe conservative enthusiasm for particular issues is obscuring the importance of these two principles. And we must be a principled movement, or our positions mean nothing.

Let's start with my second objection (what I believe to be the lesser of my thought out arguments, meaning you’ll probably find a lot of holes in this point, oh well): the importance of genuine, objective truth. Conservatives may not entirely agree on the nature of truth or the means for discovering it, but generally, they have refused the postmodern spirit and insisted that judgments, policies and personal choices be evaluated on their coherence to an objective standard of truth. Whether Christians or not, conservatives have said "You shall know the truth, and the truth will set you free."

What does this have to do with the death penalty? Plenty. In making a judgment about guilt and punishment, conservatives need to take into consideration all the truth in a given situation. Frankly, this seems to be quite the opposite of what many conservatives want to do. For example, the truth of mental status applies in the case of Andrea Yates, the Houston mother who drowned her kids. Yes, it did result in dueling expert psychologists explaining her mental state, but we aren't acting on principle if we ignore that aspect of the case, even with the clear outrage of the death of five children. We should say that no punishment is appropriate until we know if this mother was rational, insane or some mixture of the two.

Every couple weeks or months, the news magazines like 20/20 or the big news channels CNN and Fox News run a special report where a convicted murderer was released because DNA evidence proved they could not have committed the crimes for which they were convicted. Conservatives say little about this, and I'd go so far as to say I suspect some are not happy at the development. The fact is, this is the triumph of truth, and conservatives should rejoice. It is liberals and postmodernists who want us to believe that truth is political and imaginary, shaped only by the agenda of the powerful (government and religious entities). As conservatives, we believe truth is a force that brings down tyrants and rights wrongs. We don't believe it is a commodity to be ignored or manipulated.

As the debate continues, it seems there is a fear, not entirely irrational, that we should be swift and quick in the use of capital punishment to insure that the culture of excuses, with all its various prophets of irresponsibility, doesn't turn the entire justice system into the O.J. Simpson trial. I sympathize and largely support that notion, but we will not achieve that end by reducing the "truth factors" considered in a particular case. The Houston mom was eventually ruled to be insane by a reasonable definition, as such she must be dealt with differently than McVeigh, and conservatives should be quick to say it. We should strongly support the distinction between children and adults, and be against the kind of sentencing that sees them as the same, because it is the truth that they are not the same. We should welcome the evidence of science in any form that gets us closer to what really happened. Truth is always our friend and ally.

When we love the truth, we are all more free. And freedom is a core conservative principle. Quick justice and swift punishment are not the legacies of our system of government, but the legacies of lynchings and tyranny. Conservatives may not like judicial activism, the ACLU, the trial lawyers lobby and the like, but let's not forget that the truthful use of the justice system is a precious benefit of our continuing American revolution. On any given day, it may be the only protection any one of us has, and perhaps our only hope of publishing the truth.

So, we go to my other consideration (the one I hold to dearly and is the crux of a lot of my belief), the principle of limited government. And here, I am bitterly disappointed with many of my conservative counterparts. We will applaud the limitation of government on taxes and regulations. We applaud the limitation of government in taking over the private sector. We applaud the limitation of government in forcing the liberal agenda on our families. But can't we see that limited government is important when it comes to the issues of our agenda as well?

Conservatives are attempting to preserve the ideas of the American revolution, particularly the idea that unlimited central government inevitably leads to abuse. It’s actually something I was taught relentlessly while sitting under the tutelage of school administrators. Any study of history will quickly reveal that one of the primary abuses of government in history has been the application of capital punishment. Christian scripture clearly says that government has the power to bear the sword, but that same scripture shows the execution of Jesus by the state as an evil act. The founding fathers of this nation were good candidates for swift execution by the British government. All dictatorial empires have used capital punishment to eliminate opposition and intimidate the public. To listen to some conservatives talk, you'd think that captial punishment, like Christmas, can only do us good. Read Foxe's Book of Martyrs. All those burning Protestants were fried up.........legally.

When we allow the government to execute McVeigh, we should be reluctantly yielding such power. When we see the incarceration of thousands of Americans for crimes like personal drug use or tax evasion, we should be uneasy. It is quite possible that capital punishment is abused by state governments and it is quite appropriate that conservatives be the loudest voices urging caution in the use of the ultimate punishment. Not because it is wrong, but because government is sinful and awkward, usually acting in the interests of the powerful, and not to be trusted completely in any situation. Even when implementing our agenda.

As I see it, conservatives are somewhat seduced by their desire for justice and order. While these values are important, even crucial, they cannot be purchased at the price of making government more powerful. Freedom, not order, is our primary value. Justice must include the possibility that government can be unjust, and frequently finds ways to punish those who are innocent of anything other than deviation from the norm.

So I would prefer that our attitude towards capital punishment be seasoned with a bit less enthusiasm, since we are, after all, giving to government the right to kill us all for whatever reasons it deems acceptable. That makes patriots nervous. So where are the patriots?

I don't expect many conservatives to join me in these reconsiderations, but I think they are important. Conservatives are showing a dangerous tendency to be willing to give up their freedoms to purchase more order in society. If we are reduced to such a choice, all of us will have difficulty choosing, but consider one option. If we empower tyrants with more power and less truth, how will freedom loving people rise up to oppose such a government and restore true justice?

Next I tackle myself.

Everything is Spiritual

"Everything we do we do as an integrated being. 100% physical, 100% spiritual. These first Christians latched onto this right away.

'Whatever you do whether in word or deed do it in the name of Jesus Christ.'

What were they saying?

Every act is a spirtual act. It is, whether or not you are aware of the implications of what you are doing."

This is still one of the best speeches, lectures, sermons whatever you want to call it, I have ever heard.

Cannot wait to get my copy in the mail and pop it in the DVD player.

Well worth the $20 plus S&H.

Here's a morsel.

My Perception 101 - It's All About Him, Me, You

It is with a heavy heart I go back into the annals of My Perception to bring a post written, what now seems to be, a very short 8 months ago.

Many of us know by now of the ghastly events that took place in a Nebraska mall yesterday afternoon. And as the details unfold and the news media outlets search for connections and string together a framework to answer "why?" I still believe the problem is all of us.

And it isn't just mass shootings at malls or from clock towers, it is most of our "problems." We fail to get over ourselves. It just takes something as schocking as a high-school shooting to put the spotlight on something as personal as say a lack of commitment or communication barriers.

Read: - It's All About Him, Me, You

The Last 5....(12.05.07)

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.

The Last 5 (the WHAT A MONSTER TRADE by the Detroit Tigers Edition, instant World Series Contenders, if not favorites)

.... Songs played in shuffle mode on my MP3 Players

• Audioslave - Original Fire (you knew it was only a matter of time before that song popped back up)
• The Cure - Just Like Heaven
• Beattles - All You Need is Love
• Stevie Wonder - Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I'm Yours
• U2 - Beautiful Day

.....According to Forbes, Poorest Perforimg Cars of 2007 (good thing my company has the Chrysler contract..yippee)

• Chrysler Sebring
• Dodge Nitro
• Jeep Liberty
• Dodge Caliber
• Dodge Magnum

....Christmas Traditions I wonder if I could give them up (meaning I think I'd never be able too...make sense?), in no particular order

• Snow
• Christmas Lights (white only)
• Shopping for Christmas Gifts
• Christmas Music
• Egg Nog

....You Tube Videos I watched (you are going to want to check all of these out, guaranteed to make you laugh out loud, loudly!!)

Week 13 Fantasy Football

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.

Well, I lost 108.3 to 145.6 to finish at 8-5. But, I did win the divison on tie-breakers and the number 1 seed in the playoffs (I am the New England Patriots....ha) and have earned a much needed bye week for next week. Favre hurt, Roy Williams hurt and probably out for the year, LenDale White also hurt with a dislocated finger, and Braylon is nursing a hamstring injury. The Pitt defense will be facing New England in Week 14 as well. So, what a perfect time to not have to worry about anything except my WR depth is hurt now. I do have Patrick Crayton and Anthony Gonzalez, so things aren't too bad.

I do wonder if I could have won this week's game if Favre and Roy hadn't gotten hurt and played less than half the game. Maybe not, but I did lose out on $45 by not winning the most points scored in the whole league. I finished second just 16.1 points behind the leader. That's a bummer, but Fantasy Football thrives on the coulda, woulda, shoulda dilema

I did kind of back into the divison championship, sort of. I started the season 0-2, then got to 1-3. before going 7-2 down the stretch and so taking the divison isn't "backing into it" necessarily. I know the Championship isn't won, but I've done a pretty good job proving that if you can't get your hands on the top 2 or 3 rb in all the land (even though S-Jax and LJ have burned many teams this year) you DO NOT need to draft a RB in the first 3 rounds to have legitmate fantasy football success.

So, there really won't be much of an update for week 14.

My top 3 - Braylon for 30.8, Ryan Grant with 21.8, and the Pitt D with 17 to total 69.6

His top 3 - Romo with 42.9, Mcgahee went for 30.7, and Andre Johnson with 24.2 for a total of 97.8.

Recap. I lost this week, but still won the divison, took the number one seed in the playoffs and all this from a team that drafted no RB until the 4th round (Thomas Jones), started 0-2, and had an average of 133.49 points scored against every week. Matter of fact, only one other team had over 1700 points scored him he finished with 1,770 and I had 1,735 scored against.

I still feel there are some doubters so hopefully I win this whole thing and can prove it.

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