Self Centered New Year's Resolutions

This time of year, there is much talk of new year’s resolutions for self improvement and self care. I think this is interesting from a Christian perspective. Where should our focus be?

Is self care a Christian concept? Well, yes and no. When we consider the idea, we have to think about the example and teachings of Jesus and the apostles. Striving for spiritual discipline was always more important in the New Testament. Worrying about how we look or even simple material needs was not on the docket.

“25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life[e]?
28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Matthew 6:25-34

Jesus was quite clear about these things that we call basic needs, but we go above and beyond worry about these things. We worry about our weight, do we look good in a tank top, should I be using a moisturizer, how much time at the gym is too much? Am I wearing the right shoes for this outfit? Do these jeans make my butt look too big? Am I too skinny to make this shirt work?

We are such a bunch of brats. Jesus seemed to think that if we dress like flowers and eat like birds, that was enough. How did we get to this degree of shallowness? Perhaps a lack of spiritual discipline?
I think we do need to be concerned about our bodies. God gave them to us and we have a responsibility to them. The very reason I abstain from same sex sex is because our bodies are temples of God’s Spirit.

“19 Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20 you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.” 1 Corinthians 6:19, 20

If we seek to be obedient to God we will not pollute our bodies. We must use our bodies in worship of Him….right???

So how do we keep out temples clean, in good repair and serviceable for the Lord? Paul said this:

“24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. 25 Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.26 Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. 27 No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize. “ I Corinthians 9:24-27. 

So we have to bring our bodies under a strict discipline in obedience to Christ. What does that involve? Maybe running, maybe boxing? Possibly. The discipline we bring could be spiritual and it could be physical with the goal of bringing obedience to Him who saved us.

So is self care a Christian concept? If spiritual discipline is the goal, then yes; anything that enables us to serve Him and others to a greater degree. We must take up our crosses and deny ourselves. It’s a rough prescription, but we have to do it. I will not quote it here, but I would suggest a reading of Colossians 3:1-17 and Philippians 2:1-18.

In the end, it’s not about us. It’s about Jesus. If our “self care” and "self improvement" does not serve His purposes, then it is Christian malpractice.

Vice

Last week I went to see a movie about the life and times of former vice president Dick Cheney. The biopic is called "Vice". If you intend to see it, please be advised that there are spoilers ahead.

I found the film interesting because of the approach the director, Adam McKay. He made the film into sort of a black comedy; the type of comedy that crosses the line of what may be considered tasteful, mocking events that may be considered too serious to joke about. This becomes obvious in the on screen introduction to the film and it goes on from there. The film also has a narrator that seems to be an ordinary American that has opinions about Dick Cheney. You will see him and hear him throughout the film at various points giving feedback on various events while he plays with his kids, interacts with others at work and outside the home. As you watch the movie, you will find yourself wondering why he is there, and then suddenly, it becomes apparent about three quarters into the film. It is both funny and tragic in many different ways.

The movie gives you glimpses into Cheney's life at various points that give you clues about why he became the man that he is. Alcohol was not his friend. He liked to fight. He was an angry man, but it only came out when he drank. Initially, he was kicked out of college for failing grades that were the result of partying too much. After this, he worked for the phone company as a lineman, spending his time working and drinking and fighting and even getting arrested. At one point, his wife Lynne gives him an ultimatum to dry out, straighten up and become something or she would leave with the kids. This is kind of a turning point in the film. Cheney loves his wife so much that he does exactly as she asks. This strengthens their partnership, and together, they begin to climb the social and political ladder of the country they love so much.

They finally end up in Washington DC with Dick working an internship serving then Congressman Donald Rumsfeld. Rumsfeld would become Cheney's mentor early on and together, they both go on to serve in the Nixon and Ford administrations in the cabinet. The ideologies of both men are defined in this time. A combination of controlling, ruthless power grabbing and bending the mind of the sitting president seem to drive them.

Both men end up out of power after the election of Jimmy Carter. Dick goes on to become the congressman for Wyoming and Donald works in the private sector leading the G D Searle Company, pushing the development of Nutra-sweet, Equal and Metamucil.

During the Reagan administration, neither man served directly in the cabinet, but they did have unofficial assignments. They would disappear together for days at a time to work on a project called the Armageddon Plan. This is not clearly presented in the film, but the plan was to, in the event of nuclear war with the Soviets, subvert the constitution and place other non constitutional authorities in charge of government; extra-constitutional continuity of government.

During the George H W Bush administration and later, the Clinton administration, the men continued to work together inside and outside government to achieve their purposes.

It all comes together in the George W Bush administration when Cheney becomes the secretary of defense and Dick Cheney is elevated to the vice presidency of the United States. The film  indicates that Bush begged Cheney early on to be his VP and that Cheney only submitted to the request after a deal that would give Cheney control over certain intelligence, defense and financial assets within the government. He would become the first vice president to wield presidential power in peace time and in a time of national emergency.

The roles of Cheney and Rumsfeld in the 9/11 debacle is telling. When the planes hit the World Trade Center, President Bush was in Sarasota, FL visiting an elementary school. It was the perfect storm for power hungry politicians. Cheney sent Bush to a bunker at Offut AFB in Omaha on Air Force One and then Cheney took control of the government from an "undisclosed location". The protocol was new. Cheney exercised his theoretical plan to take control of events in the absence of the President called the "unitary executive". In the event of national emergency where the president was not available, the vice president was empowered to do whatever he thought was needed to protect the country, even in the face of constitutional prohibitions. Strangely, Cheney's lawyers were with him throughout the event and he spent much time in conversation with them as 9/11 unfolded.

It was only the day before that Donald Rumsfeld had advised congress of a missing 2.3 trillion dollars that Pentagon officials could not account for. Strangely, the next day, the portion of the Pentagon that contained the records of this missing cash was destroyed by one of the planes of the 9/11 attackers.

Also destroyed on 9/11 was World Trade Center Building 7. No plane hit this office tower, but for some reason, fires broke out inside this building and just after 5:00 PM that day, it collapsed on itself just as the twin towers had done that morning. Inside that building were the largest offices of the CIA and and defense departments outside of Washington DC. Strangely, all records there were destroyed too. Odd no?

In the aftermath of 9/11, Cheney and Rumsfeld worked diligently to create what would become a national security state to ensure this would never happen again. Secret courts (FISA), the TSA, off site (outside the US) detention centers for suspected terrorists and torture were authorized and the war against terror began in earnest.

Though none of the alleged 9/11 terrorists were from Afghanistan or Iraq, the war on terror began in these countries. They were believed to be hot spots for al-Qaeda and Saddam Hussein was supposed to be harboring weapons of mass destruction. None of this proved to be true, but this did not stop them. Combat still rages in these countries and many more. The United States has been at continuous war for 17 years in many countries in the middle east and Africa, but we have never made war in any country that had terrorists involved in 9/11. Odd no? Strangely, all 9/11 terrorists came from nations allied with the US; Saudi Arabia (15), the United Arab Emirates (2), and Egypt and Lebanon (1 each).

One must wonder what was the real purpose of the war on terror??? Was it to end terrorism or was it to consolidate power at home and bring chaos to the middle east? The film does not answer this question directly, but I think the answer is obvious.

The film's final scenes give more insight into Cheney's character. Throughout the movie, Cheney has heart problems. He has a bum ticker. He finally reaches a point where a transplant is required, but there is no heart available. As he is in the hospital with family gathered in preparation for his death, a bicyclist is tragically killed on the streets of Washington DC and his heart is delivered to the hospital in time to save Cheney. Strangely, the bicyclist is none other than the film's narrator, implying that his untimely death may have been a timely "accident".

After Cheney's recovery, there is one final moment of unlikely but likely character fulfillment. Dick Cheney actually fires Donald Rumsfeld from his position as secretary of defense. The mentor is now put out of power by the mentee. Supposedly, this was at the direction of President Bush, but Rumsfeld clearly thinks otherwise as he is fired by what the film portrays as his co-conspirator.

I liked the movie. It was both funny and serious while being funny at the same time. I think it is probably an accurate portrayal of history too. Let there be no doubt. Steely eyed, immoral men still control government and empower themselves at the expense of others. The problem is that the ability of the common man to object to this and dis-empower them is rapidly being lost. Is it too late? That remains to be seen.