Have you seen Michael Moore's movie, Sicko? I haven't, but I did see his interview with Larry King last week. Though all of his information may not be true, it got me to thinking. What is the real issue of our health care crisis? Why are costs exorbitant? Why do poor people not have access to adequate health care?

When you start prodding around, you discover that people are throwing the blame elsewhere. The physicians say it is the insurance companies. The insurance companies say it is the hospitals. The hospitals say it is the government. On and on the blame carousel goes. No one is willing to step up & say, "O.K., it's me. I am the problem."

And the reality is this simple. The fault lies at the feet of everyone involved, even the patients. (Hey, if you did not get sick we would not have this crisis:-) But even beneath that failure to take responsibility is a deeper issue. The main reason we have a health care crisis in America in the 21st century is simple: Trust. Or the lack thereof. Hospitals don't trust insurance companies who don't trust physicians who don't trust patients who don't trust hospitals. We simply are not willing to trust each other to do the right thing. And rightly so. For the most part, all of us have proven ourselves untrustworthy. And the reason for that is money. But that's for another blog.

Isn't it amazing that it seems that all of the major crises we face as a nation seem to come back to simple things like relationships and trust? It is the heart of humanity.

I just read a fascinating & inspiring message by Gary Haugen - When the Will of God is Scary.
Gary is the founder & director of International Justice Mission. Their goal is to stand up for the poor against injustice around the world. They are especially entrenched in the battle against human slavery.

The link is: http://216.128.18.195/IJMinterns/GHaugenFallsChurch10_22_06.pdf
Or you can go to their website at www.ijm.com. Look under "Students" & then "Internships."
Scroll down & You will see a link to this article.

Here's a sample:
In speaking of the three Jewish boys facing the evil Babylonian king, Nebuchadnezzar, Gary says,

Wow. I want to be like that. But on the other hand, I don’t ever want to be like that. I don’t ever want to be in a situation where I have to be that brave. Right? I’d like to be brave, but I’d also like to be safe. My heavenly Father, on
the other hand, loves me deeply enough to tell me the truth. He tells me I can’t be both brave and safe. He wants me to be clear there’s a choice, and he wants me to choose to be brave. And choosing to be brave means choosing not to be safe.

Give it a read & I think it will give you a whole new perspective not only on the folly of self-preservation, but also on this very issue with parenting. Do we want our kids to be safe or brave?

Many of you who read this blog know of my present unemployment situation. The following comes from this season of life where we are living with uncertainty and yet with confidence in God. (Though it is sometimes shaken)

A GOD MOMENT

Waiting, waiting
Looking and listening,
A phone call, an email
Some kind of sign that I am in the process,
That God is at work –
Behind the scenes,
In the dark.

Isn’t that place – the dark –
Where God does His best work?
A growing fetus,
A planted seed,
A dead Jesus.

But nothing, only silence.

Where is the contraction to push out the child?
Where is the rain to water the soil?
Where is the angel to move the stone?

I don’t need an answer
I just need to know that behind the emptiness of this season
There is a purpose being fulfilled,
A plan being accomplished.

Where there’s a plan, there’s hope
That this is just a season.
It too shall pass.
It awakens a deeper faith
That will trust God for one more day.

I am probably not the first to say this, but here it goes:
We are already in World War 3.

I mean that literally. Think about it for a moment. We have active fighting going on in Iraq and Afghanistan (& it looks like Iran is getting in on the fight too). We have bombings on England, Scotland, Yemen, and in recent years, Spain, Bali and even America. This fight against terrorism is a global conflict. A number of countries are already included in the war. This fight is not an America VS Bin Laden conflict. This fight is quickly escalating to a level we have not known since WW II.

I suppose our first question is: Is this the beginning of the end? Should we be listening for the hoofbeats of the apocalypse? Well I don't know about that. If you watch CNN very much, you may know of Glenn Beck, a conservative talk show guy. Yes, he has the 7:00 PM slot on CNN Headline News - Amazing! Anyway, he had Jerry Jenkins & Tim LaHaye on his program last week discussing this very topic. I was astonished. But sure enough they discussed the prophet Ezekiel on primetime television. Who would have imagined that?

I'm no doomsday prophet, but I see we are already in a worldwide conflict. You may not call it World War 3, but that is what it looks like to me. I don't know that it is a precursor to Armageddon, but we are the midst of critical time in history. Only God knows what it is about. And I'm glad He does.