Should the Bible have the final say?

     Many people believe the Bible is the word of God, holds the absolute truth, and is the utmost guide of human behavior.  Many also claim that their particular religion has the best interpretation.  Some believe in creationism, that everything was created 5000 years ago and took seven days to complete.  They claim the Bible disproves evolution  and considers homosexuality and abortion as sin.
     Each citizen has the right to use the Bible as their own source of truth.  They also have the right to raise their children with this faith.  When the children become adults, they have the right to agree or disagree.  Citizens do not , however, have the right to expect public schools or local and federal government to base laws on any one religion.  Each religion can persuade lawmakers to see their point of view,  but they can't demand that their religion have preferential influence.
     Is the Bible the final authority in your life?
     Should it be the final authority in making policy and law?

Expectations

     You don't always get what you expect.  When future events don't go as planned, some aspects are beyond every one's control.  Rain may fall on any one's parade.  We have to be flexible and enjoy the way things are instead of the way we had wanted them to be.
     When other people don't behave the way we expect, we need to realize that we may have unfairly expected them to satisfy our wants.  We can't expect everyone around us to do what we want them to.
     We may need to distinguish between our needs and our wants.  We all have certain basic needs that need to be satisfied, but not all of our wants are essential.  If our list of wants is unrealistic, we may be creating a situation that can't live up to our expectations.
     In some cases, we need to make our expectations known beforehand so others can better understand us, but we need to be fair and realistic.  Afterwards, messages of appreciation will benefit everyone.  When we feel the need to send messages of disappointment, we need to be sure they don't seem petty and become counterproductive.  Appreciate the half-full glass instead of demanding an overflow.

Coming of Age

     As young people go through the transition from childhood to adulthood, they develop the ability to understand the laws and traditions of their religion and society.  They are then granted the rights, responsibilities, and privileges of church and state.  Another coming of age can occur when adults increase their ability to evaluate the established laws and traditions.  They may decide to agree or disagree with, change, or eliminate some of the rules and customs from their own lives as long as the rights of others are not infringed upon.
     Just as adolescents have to struggle sometimes to finally come of age, adults also may struggle to form their own way.  Difficulties may arise with family and friends when a person begins to break away from what they have done in the past.  Some loved ones will not understand what is going on and become uncomfortable with the changes.
      Our ancestors were people just like us who tried to improve civilization by setting certain standards of behavior that would benefit everyone.  They also made mistakes just as we do.  Every generation keeps some of the laws and traditions while altering or eliminating others.  Every individual has the freedom, responsibility, and privilege of  deciding what is best for themselves.
     Transitions from childhood to adulthood, from parenthood to the empty nest, from careers to retirement, all require us to evolve to the next stage of life.  We experience a coming of age all throughout our lives.
   
       

 

Why fb?

     Experts seem to believe that people use facebook for two main reasons: 1) the need to belong, and 2) the need for self-presentation.  Belonging to a group can help reduce loneliness and isolation.  We can get to know each other through pictures and words.
     We can observe how we are alike and how we are different, how we agree and disagree, what we value and what we believe.  We can share the serious and the humorous, our pride and joys, plus ask for and give advice.  As a group, we can help each other.
     Facebook is a place to describe ourselves, our history, our current events, and our hopes for the future.  Through frequent up-dates, we enable our fb friends to become part of our daily lives.  Some of  our friends and relatives seldom are with us in person, but fb can provide a fast and stamp-free method of communicating.
     This may sound like a commercial for the social media, but I am a true fan.  Keeping in touch with classmates, friends both near and far, and extended family is as easy as going to facebook and view the latest pictures and read the posts. 

Prevention and Cure

     Immunizations, vaccinations, flu shots, vitamin pills, a clean environment, good nutrition and exercise, all can help prevent a certain amount of physical problems.  Even with all these methods of prevention,  we can still come down with disease.  Then, we have to discover methods to improve or cure the problem through meds that control bodily functions like blood pressure, cholesterol, and diabetes, plus antibiotics, surgery, rehab, and special diet.
     This process can also be used with other challenges.  If we can develop positive behavior patterns that are beneficial to ourselves and others, we may prevent many negative situations.  Once problems occur, we have to discover a way to improve or cure the situation.  We can work out a plan ourselves or get professional counseling when necessary.

     Within our body, our mind, and our behavior patterns, prevention is much easier than trying to find a cure later on.