Kansas House Prayer
Here's an interesting link I found while waiting for classes to begin. I have way too much time on my hands at the moment...
Wright's Prayer
The linked site is the Urban Legends Reference Page. It is a compendium of knowledge on various topics. This one is particularly enjoyable.
Here is the prayer in its entirety. For the story behind it, read the link.
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Heavenly Father, we come before you to ask your forgiveness. We seek your direction and your guidance. We know your word says, "Woe to those who call evil good." But that's what we've done.
We've lost our spiritual equilibrium. We have inverted our values. We have ridiculed the absolute truth of your word in the name of moral pluralism. We have worshiped other gods and called it multiculturalism.
We have endorsed perversion and called it an alternative lifestyle.
We've exploited the poor and called it a lottery. We've neglected the needy and called it self-preservation. We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare. In the name of choice, we have killed our unborn. In the name of right to life, we have killed abortionists.
We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building self-esteem. We have abused power and called it political savvy. We have coveted our neighbor's possessions and called it taxes. We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression. We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment.
Search us, oh, God, and know our hearts today. Try us. Show us any wickedness within us. Cleanse us from every sin and set us free. Guide and bless these men and women who have been sent here by the people of the State of Kansas, and that they have been ordained by you to govern this great state.
Grant them your wisdom to rule. May their decisions direct us to the center of your will. And, as we continue our prayer and as we come in out of the fog, give us clear minds to accomplish our goals as we begin this Legislature. For we pray in Jesus' name, Amen.
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Biblical Backing
For those of you who think
Womanly Beauty,
Haiku, and
More Poetry are inappropriate or shouldn't be on a Christian's website I offer this article by Douglas Jones :
Love in the Afternoon
I may take a less intellectual approach than he, but I feel like we're at least on the same page when it comes to purpose and point. I take for granted the context in which I write. I am a faithfully and gloriously happy married man. God, through my wife, inspires the expression of my sexuality and the desire to educate others so that their own marriage beds may benefit from and delight in the pleasures that God intended for us in the covenant of marriage. I see nothing wrong in discussing these matters. If you do, don't read what I write. Remember, God created what we have....how can it be ugly? I will attempt to include a more blatant context from now on so I am not misunderstood. I do not advocate superficial physical relationships. I do not advocate serious relationships with physical components (sex) outside of marriage. I
do advocate loving and living as God has meant us to.
One more point before I go: I think education on these matters should come from loved ones, friends, and family. I think that parents are the ultimate authority for the education of our young on sexual matters. I think many adults grew up without much teaching being done by their own parents and the trend continues today. The children of yesterday and today are learning how to love, how to have sex, and how to think about these things from bathrooms, locker rooms, and playgrounds. They are being taught in classrooms topics that should be taught at home. Given the choice between no sexual education and a secular one in a classroom I would buckle and choose the secular education on sexual matters
BUT this isn't necessarily a question of only those two diametrically opposed choices. Parents, teach your children about sex. Teach them about the proper context for lovemaking. Teach them that it is a gift from God and not a dirty secret that no one should talk about. Then, if they find themselves in a secular education situation they will be prepared for what they are taught. They will have the foundation of proper education to allow them to gain the good from the situation and shun the bad. If I can make it easier for even one person to speak about sexual matters, thereby educating their loved ones or someone dear to them, then I consider that a success.
Womanly Beauty
In a recent discussion with certain nameless friends (well, they have names but the names won’t be mentioned here) I went on a rant about the female anatomy. The most intimate of female anatomy, that is.
Seems some of my friends have fallen into the too common trap of not appreciating the full of the female form, the female anatomy, and the female in her entirety. The idea that the mons pubis, the vulva, the labia (both majora and minora), the clitoral hood, the clitoris, and the vagina are not objects of beauty is an all too commonly held belief. I’m willing to say that most of society, even some women, does not appreciate the beauty, the grandeur, the marvel and splendor of this area. I find this shameful. Granted, a lot of women have good reason not to embrace their own anatomy due to societal pressure for them to view it negatively. Coupled with the history of ridicule, joking, scorn, and general negativity society holds for women in general and particularly this most womanly of anatomies it’s no wonder women themselves often fall into the same ideology as men. A third area for potential problems later in life is the frequency that women are told that their own bodies are ‘dirty’ or that ‘good girls’ don’t do this or that. Women are not given chances to embrace their entire body; they are not given the chance to explore freely; they are told that they are disgusting and dirty for what is between their legs. I find this repulsive and sickening.
Whether or not, in private, people are embracing the beauty of woman is only part of the problem. If I am wrong, and people do appreciate the beauty of femininity in private, then why is the public world so rife with jokes targeting this region? The smell, the taste, the act of cunnilingus, its form, the biological functioning…all subjects of derision and mocking. I’m not so righteous that I cannot admit finding some of these jokes funny myself. But I view them as I view all jokes…as not being fully based in reality. I often laugh at things I hold very dear to me when they are the subjects of joking. However, when the jokes begin to dictate and reform beliefs about whatever the subject is the jokes become problematic. This is the case with jokes about the pubis of women. The public consensus is that this area is to be viewed negatively and with contempt. It should be laughed at.
I have come into contact with many women who do not view themselves as beautiful. I have come into contact with many women whose ideology about themselves probably began with irrational beliefs about their own anatomy. They are not comfortable with their anatomy and cannot be full women because of this. They have problems in marriage, problems in loving, and problems in self-esteem. Of course, this isn’t their only problem, this irrational belief that they are ugly ‘down there,’ that they are dirty ‘down there,’ but it can be a hugely problematic and it is indeed a problem.
More to come, dear readers….more to come….
Haiku?! This is getting out of hand....
Erotic 1
Black Forest on hill
Canyon running through middle
part the Cliffs and taste
Erotic 2
Moisture flows like rain
the Rose opens wide for me
Ecstacy begins
Erotic 3
a lone Redwood stands
darkness falls on the Forest
rain then soaks the Tree
Erotic 4
Twin Peaks far away
across the Plain I will go
in between I rest
Boredom 1
My mind hums loudly
insanity creeping up
rather, it's boredom
Boredom 2
Quantitative stats
twirling my pen is more fun
lost in a day dream
Dog 1
Ball of energy
Napoleon Fancypants
our little toughy
More Poetry?! What the heck is going on....
Two Dances ©2002
The dance we shared
that night so long ago
still remains in my mind
Twirling and holding
not wanting to let go
Your head on my shoulder
my hand in yours
the heat of the dance
growing in waves
Bodies together
Heartbeats entwined
You raise your face
eyes looking in mine
All others disappear
it’s just you and I
I can smell you so sweet and fresh
feel you laughing against my chest
We lose ourselves in the motions
the dance making us one
Hands searching and finding
what we knew was there all along
The gentle caress of a pillow
your weight holding me down
I can still taste you
from moments before
The passion building
The dance at its height
The music sways us
but we are the notes
Back to reality
lost in each other no more
The hardwood floor
beneath our feet
but your body so soft against me
I try to ignore the searing pain
that is left when we part
and the music dies slowly
but the memory remains
to this day.
Poetry?!
We continue to grow old
Nothing but ourselves on our minds
Materialism consumes our souls
Putting all meaning in a bind
Innocence lost, never had
The myth of empiricism perpetuates
Original death, but not so sad
He who argues mentally masturbates
We are blind but for grace
Redemptive glory for those He chose
We are wanderers in this place
Awaiting, this place, to lose
What's my name? Who am I?
So, you are all probably wondering who I am. My name is Russell. I am a
happily married, 24 year old,
Christian, southern male (born and raised in GA). My current professional endeavor happens to be working on my Master's Thesis (to be finished by May 1st) here at the uber alles of southern universities, the
University of Georgia. I am studying cognitive psychology. My research involves couples in varying degrees of relationships and their reaction to advice in problem areas of differing importance or relevance. Not cognitive, you say? You are partially correct...we are using cognitive measures in this area of clinical and social research to obtain more valid measurements of reactions than the often used self report. We are also flirting with publication in the literature of cryptoamnesia. That's work. Moving on to recreation: I write, draw, take pictures, daydream, read, watch movies, maintain my deep connections to my friends, have sex with the missus, play with
Napoleon the
WonderPug, and generally live a full and fun life. I am truly blessed. My wife
Bly is my best friend and I would be completely lost without her [did I mention the great sex we have...ah, I see I did ;) ]. That's the short of it...more to come, I'm sure....
Comments
For those who have requested commenting, commenting you now have. It took some tweaking and some gnashing of teeth, but the commenting system seems to be working. Fun.
Oh, and as I'm sure you've noticed...the color scheme is back to normal for those who saw the unfortunate yellows and reds. They will probably be played with more in the future when I am more confident in my matching skills. For now, my wife still has to tell me what colors go together...such a typical male....
