Life and Death and Apollo 13

I'm really becoming a fan of finding places in our culture where human life is valuable.

I'm a little behind on things, but I only saw Apollo 13 for the first time a few weeks ago. Anyways, it was great, and one thing in particular really struck me. When it looked as if Apollo 13 wouldn't be able to land back on earth, the entire world was captivated by the story. People put their normal lives on hold, gathered around their televisions, and prayed for these lives that hung in the balance. For three lives. Yet how often do we not care about far more than three lives that are hanging in the balance? While it's discouraging sometimes when people don't care about stopping the thousands of deaths each day from abortion, it's refreshing to see the world care about the lives of these three men.

Life and Death and...the AVENGERS!!

I'm not usually one for action movies. While they can be fun, completely lacking a plot is one of the most annoying things a movie can do. Even if there is a plot, not having good characters or character development or anything at all realistic is really annoying. Well, I don't know if the Avengers somehow managed all of that perfectly or if I was just in a super good movie-watching mood when I watched it, but I loved it.

Maybe I just liked all different superheroes with all different back stories, habits, styles, and struggles all trying to put aside their differences and work together. Iron Man's arrogance, the Hulk's anger issues, Captain America feeling outdated, Thor being a mythical god...ect, it made for an interesting plot.

Or maybe I just like the idea of superheroes.

Or maybe I realized just how much superhero movies appeal to the part of us that wants the good guys to win, that wants evil to lose, that wants human life to be spared.

I'm beginning to realize the parts of our culture that does value life. The Avengers have to work together in order to protect millions of people from dying at the hands of evil. Near the end of the movie, New York City is under a huge attack and many authorities wanted to drop a nuclear bomb on the city in order to keep the attack from spreading. The Avengers want to spare as much human life as they can, so they have to find a way to save the world as well as the city.

I like superhero movies, cause with each daring and incredibly act they are protecting the lives of the human beings. Too many action movies show thousands of people dying during a really cool shot of a building blowing up. Superheroes value and protect human life.

Life and Death and Parks and Rec

Last week's episode of the best TV show ever, Parks and Recreation, brought up some interesting questions. When City Counsel candidate Leslie Knope accidentally insulted a man in a speech, only to find he had just died, people were horrified. What she said would have been fine if he had been living, but because he had recently passed away it was unacceptable. Now me, being the Parks and Rec fan and nerd that I am, couldn't help but ask questions.

What is it about death that makes us respect those who have passed?

We go to funerals of people we barely knew or aren't even fond of. Why is that? Why is insulting a deceased person extra offensive, even if it's the truth? Why do we honor the dead, even those whose life we never honored?

I think this has to do with our understanding and value of life. Which leads to more questions.

How much do you value life? If you had to put a price on it, what would it be? To what extent would you go to save the life of someone you love, somebody you know, or a stranger? Saving a life could mean jumping in a frozen lake to save a drowning person, pushing someone out of the path of an oncoming car, stepping in when a person is being mugged, preventing suicide, performing life saving surgery, being at the right place at the right time to call 911, or sending money to developing countries to provide food, water, and medicine to the poor. Whatever it may be, is it worth you sacrificing your time, energy, and resources for?

We all value life to some extent. It's not entirely about courage, bravery, or sacrificing. While that's definitely part of it, I think it's mostly about our value of life. Do we ever not value life enough? That's an extremely dangerous mistake to make, but I do it all the time. Where do we need to value life more? Whose life am I not valuing?

(Also, congratulations to Leslie for winning the campaign.) 

Where Are the Feminists Now?

***Edit: I lot of people seem to be missing my point here. I'm sorry for the ambiguity; please let me clarify. I am not blaming feminists for forced sterilization, forced contraception, and forced abortions in Asia. I am simply asking why they aren't fighting this more. If abortion is a fundamental right, then is it okay that it's being forced on women in Asia? It's starting to look like abortion is not equalizing men and women in Asia, rather being used to discriminate against women.

Abortion is used to kill women. There are currently 163 million more men than women in Asia. Why? Because 163 women have been killed. Whether you believe an unborn human, a fetus, is a life or a potential life (another argument for another time), you still can't say that 163 missing women is bringing equality to women.

I'm sorry for the confusing and I will try to be more clear in future posts. Thank you for reading.***


“163 million women are missing from Asia. That is the entire female population of the United States.” 

The feminists who claim the “right to abortion” is what gives them true equality with men should be horrified by this truth. 

Thanks to population control, forced sterilization, forced contraception, and forced abortions in Asia, there are 163 million men without future wives. Rebecca Taylor explains, “This abundance of unmarried men is not a small problem. Unmarried men are more violent than their married counterparts. Crime is now on the rise: 

Between 1992 and 2004 China’s crime rate nearly doubled. In India from 2003 to 2007 rape cases surged over 30 percent and abduction by over 50 percent prompting the government to unveil female-only trains.”

163 million women are missing, and those who are left are living in fear of being raped, kidnapped, and sold as property to ensure rich families a wife for their son. The pro-abortion movement claims that abortion is a fundamental right for women. Where are the feminists now?

http://www.lifenews.com/2011/08/03/legacy-of-population-control-163-million-missing-women/ 

Ladies and Gentlemen

This was originally posted in July of 2011 using tumblr. 

I have a thought. I’ve been reading through the book of Mark, and I noticed the way Jesus talks to women. He always speaks tenderly and respectfully, treats them like ladies, and makes them feel beautiful. Even when talking to the sinners and prostitutes, He treated them with value in a way that no one else ever had. He knows all the terrible things they did, yet He casts no judgement. I can’t imagine being around Jesus and not feeling like a beautiful lady who is worth more than the world to Him. How incredible is that? Not only is it true, but I can have that mindset now. I am a child of God, a beautiful woman He created and loves. And ladies, so are you!

Secondly, it made me wonder about the way men treat women and women treat men. Is there a way for men to treat women that makes them feel like beautiful ladies? Is there a way women can treat men to make them feel like strong men? We live in such a confused world where some women want to be treated like men, some men try to be women, and people are so confused about what being a man or a woman means. Can how Christians treat and talk to each other change that? Jesus treated men and women so differently, but in a completely appropriate, encouraging, and God-glorifying way. How can we do the same to each other? 

Reply to this, message me, or email me with comments. I’d love to hear what you have to say.