Date: 2016-07-24
From: Off Trail

To: Off Trail
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

During his walk in the woods, Bill Bryson took a side trip from the Appalachian trail and explored Centralia, a coal town in Pennsylvania that was abandoned due to a 50 year old underground burning coal vein. We decided to follow his example on our day off and go somewhere that was on fire as well. After grabbing a cheesesteak and visiting a church called Calvary chapel Philly that faithfully preached our need for Jesus, we ended up in the heart of Philadelphia, set to begin hosting the Democratic National Convention tomorrow. They say it's always Sunny in Philadelphia, and with a heat index well over 100F, it was a furnace. Bus loads of Hillary's opponents were setting the city ablaze, sporting shirts that said "Feel the Bern" (Bernie Sanders). There were also those opposed to utilizing our countries resources, sporting "what the frack?" shirts to display their opposition to drilling. And there was even a lonely pro Israel tent supporting the war on terror, Donald trump, and sending Hillary to prison. By far the most interesting was someone wearing a shirt that said "here to listen." The only group that seemed under represented was the pro-Hillary camp, but then the winners have nothing to protest about. The sign carrying activists would get up from the shade and congregate whenever the cameramen would tell them. In short, democracy at its finest, delivering on its promise of the right to both think freely and then speak your mind. Implicit to freedom of speech is protection of all the voices that wish to be expressed from all the other voices. This is why tee shirts with a message against Israel are acceptable forms of free speech, but tee shirts covering up suicide bombs (attempting to silence someone's voice) are not. Praise God we live in a country that aspires to protect us from the tyranny of everyone else's views! One of our personal heros in the Bible is Noah, a man of faith, a preacher of righteousness, and of course a boat builder. One of the greatest lessons from his life is that he exerted his freedom to think. And did he ever think differently! And consider this, out of the whole world with doubtless millions of people, he alone was right. He didn't just go with the flow. Even though every single human being on earth believed the wrong thing, he remained faithful to what he knew was true. Think about it, no one but his immediate family got into that ark. How many had he preached to in the 600 years that he lived before the flood? None of them were spared from God's wrath... If he were pastoring a church, it would not have had one baptism in 600 years! No one else got on the boat. Just a few of his crazy thoughts are as follows: 1) God cannot be approached without a blood sacrifice 2) God's wrath was coming on the whole world 3) That obedience means something to the Lord. (Imagine just for a second if he believed that God's wrath was coming, but then didn't bother obeying God by building the ark! There would be a lot of lonely fish and empty forests after the flood without any people or animals to keep them company.) The bottom line is that it is ok for people to have different thoughts and opinions. God allowed it on earth back then, and he allows it now. God will be the final judge of the thoughts and intents of our hearts, we don't have to be the judge of everyone else, even when we are right. Our beliefs don't need suicide bombs attached to them as a means of coercion. Think about it, Jesus when he was dying on the cross, cried out, "father forgive them, they don't know what they are doing." Jesus was surely right, but instead of judging and condemning them, he expresses a desire for reconciliation. And praise God we have such protection extended to us in America to preach righteousness to this world. That flood was just an example of what is to come for everyone who chooses to rebel against God to their dying breath. He sent Jesus as a blood sacrifice to save us. Obedience to his requirement for us to believe in Him is the only way to be spared from the Wrath of God that will be poured out on everyone who rejects Him. The freedom bell may be in a museum in Philly, but Noah's crazy beliefs still ring loudly for anyone who will hear. Thank you America for not silencing that beautiful hymn!