Child of Man, Face of God - Part I

 For the inheritance of Lord Jehovah is children, the reward of the fruit of the womb. 

 -- Psalm 127:3

History tells us 1.5 million children were slaughtered during the Holocaust.  People try to soften the description by calling it murder.  When 1.5 million children are gassed, cremated in ovens or dumped in mass graves, to call it murder is compounding the slaughter of innocence with a healthy dose of bullshit.  To say it was directly or as a direct consequence of Nazi actions is letting the Nazis off easy for the sake of history.  These genocidal sociopaths had no place in their new world order for the sick, the infirm, the physically or mentally deficient, or the Jew.  Sound familiar?  

History repeats itself because we don't teach real history; we teach a softer, kinder, sadly imperfect fairy tale that won't give children nightmares.  Enter the Nazi legacy of radical Islamic terrorism.  Oh, yes!  Check out this link for an eye opening history lesson: Al Qaeda Terrorists Nazi Connection

We've all been victims of Nazi smoke and mirrors.  It is a dirty little secret that escapes occasionally from the allied countries of WWII that are complicit in a sick, twisted whitewashing of a dark time in world history.  Is it really any surprise that the Nazi "final solution" has continued under the leadership of Al Qaeda?  Should we really be surprised to hear of atrocities against women and children?  Hundreds of children are being slaughtered and/or having offenses committed against them by ISIS, while hundreds more are being psychologically twisted to the insanity that is the sociopathic Islamic heresy of ISIS by being forced to fight, rape, and murder alongside them in the name of Allah.  The only differences in this new threat to innocence and the Nazi scourge is the efficiency of the killing machine, and the heresy of doing it all in God's name; slaughter of God's innocent creations is still slaughter, and the slaughter of women, children, and innocence is still heresy.

“And everyone who commits an offense against one of these little ones who believe in me, it were profitable for him that a donkey's millstone would be hung around his neck and he be sunk in the depths of the sea.”

-- Matthew 18:6

Have you ever seen the children in a cancer treatment center, or a children's hospital?  It always amazes me how much better they deal with life, knowing the likelihood of their impending death.  Adults and family are falling apart around them while they act as the calming influence.  How mature is that?  They have lived too short of a life to have become fearful of losing... Losing what?  Everything?  They come into this world with a child's innocence and, before adults can ruin them, they leave just as innocent as the day they were born.  And, during the short time these special children are with us, they teach us so much about life and God, if we are willing to listen.

“While we try to teach our children all about life, our children teach us what life is all about.”

-- Angela Schwindt, author and Homeschooling Mom

One of the reason children are so important to me, other than having my rights to be a parent ripped away from me, is my realization of how important being blessed by God to even be a parent was.  I let that opportunity slip through my fingers.  I have the title of parent only by virtue that I sired two great kids, but my job, my divorce, and my ignorance were roadblocks to earning that title.

Some of us are ordered by the court system of this country to surrender our rights to be parents to a spouse that has as much interest in the child's welfare as they had in building a marriage and a family.  The child is considered a mistake or a pawn to be used as leverage to get as much as the custodial parent can before the child comes of age and the vault to free money is closed.  This isn't parenting.  I don't think anyone is prepared to be a parent unless they have lost their rights to be a parent.  

I think this is why I care about children.  I think this is why deadbeat parents and parents that simply abandon their children piss me off so.  You learn to hate the accusatory looks fathers get from child support officers, and the way they treat you as less than deserving of their respect.  Deadbeat parents make those of us who truly care really look guilty. 

People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” And he took the children in his arms, placed his hands on them and blessed them.

-- Mark 10:13-16

I feel for children that have no loving father, no loving parents, and I really feel for children that are being used as pawns by their custodial parent just to bilk money from the other parent that would much rather have the children in a loving home with two loving parents.  These kids might as well be in paid foster care for all the court system cares.  Whether the child ends up with an immoral parent is of little concern.  The scales of justice are indeed blind.  If all of this isn't committing an offense against the child, then what is?  People that use children for profit have no right to be parents of children.  For all intents and purposes they are whoring their children out, and they should be ashamed for it.

Dear God,

I just want someone to love me, someone to talk to when I need to talk.  Someone to cry on when I need to cry.  Most of all someone to love me and walk as far as they wish through my life.  Amen.

-- Prayer from a homeless child

If you want an eye opener, don't listen to what street kids have to say.  Their words are colored by disappointment and their situation.  Read what they write.  Read what they write about feelings, and their wants, hopes, and desires.  I have looked into the face of a homeless child and seen the lack of trust and the anger, the wheels turning to determine how best to use me to their advantage.  I have also looked into their eyes and found fear and hurt, the pleading soul in the child I was looking for.  Many parents don't lose the child because they want too, they lose the child because they have never been taught how to parent, or how to love.

A child comes into this world innocent, ready to be taught the moral lessons needed to find their path into the next life.  They are born innocent, but with the capacity for free choice.  Their choices, if not guided with good parenting and advice, can lead them down some dark paths.  What we do to them as they grow determines who they will become as adults.  They need love and they also need discipline.  They need a good balance of emotion to prepare them for an ugly, dangerous, world that awaits them, while also being able to appreciate all the beauty and love.

“A child needs both to be hugged and unhugged. The hug lets her know she is valuable. The unhug lets her know that she is viable. If you’re always shoving your child away, they will cling to you for love. If you’re always holding them closer, they will cling to you for fear.”

-- Polly Berrien Berends, children's book author

When I look into the face of a child, I see the many faces of an emotional God.  In children of want, I see a face that asks the question of Christ, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from helping me, and from the words of my groaning?"  And, in this face, I understand that each of us is in shame.  Each of us turns our back on the least of us.

The next time you see a street kid, the next time you avert your eyes a make to turn away so as not to be bothered, realize that there stands the message from an accusing God.  These are the children of men, the gift of a loving God.  Dare we abandon them?  Dare we even consider turning from them?  Maybe we should learn to think twice, for in these children is the reflection of our future.  Is this really what we want our future to be?  Maybe we would be better served going after those that abandoned them in the first place.  These "parents" are the real architects, the real threat, the real warning of the imminent downfall to the future of mankind.  We have met the enemy and it is us.  

Where baby boomers ruined the country, millennials, ill-equipped from lack of parenting and quality education,  and  will be left to wallow in the devastation left by unions, corrupt politics, a liberal legal system spinning out of control, and threats to world peace and freedom.  If ever there was a time for the second coming of Christ...  

Maybe our prayers to God are the best legacy we can leave these kids.  And we might think about asking them for forgiveness.

Just saying.

The power of words is that a life can be launched with as little as a single phrase, an uplifting word or an act of kindness.

Think of the power we wield and the impact we can make if we become more intentional about encouraging our children.

Our words are often the very things that help create future dreams. And sometimes those dreams are to be just like us.

-- Anonymous 

Click here to continue:  Child of Man, Face of God - Part II

Editor's Note 

(re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card) 

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch, it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either opinion any more right or wrong than the other. An opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form opinions of their own, if they haven't already done so. This is also why, occasionally, I will present an "opinion" just to stir an emotional pot. Where it may sound like I agree with the statements made, I'm more interested in getting others to consider another viewpoint. 

It is my fervent hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions and then engaging in peaceful, constructive, discussion in an arena of mutual respect concerning the opinions put forth. After over twenty years with military intelligence, I have come to believe engaging each other in this manner and in this arena is the way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we do afterward, and what we learn from the experience.

Pastor Tony spent 22 years with Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, and instructor. He is founder of the Congregation for Religious Tolerance and author/editor of the Congregation's official blog site, "The Path," which offers a vehicle for commentary and guidance concerning one's own personal, spiritual, path toward peace and the final destination.