Welcome to the Gunshow

In the past few months, the topic of gun control has been getting people around the country fired up. There are groups of people boycotting other groups of people, all sorts of legislation being proposed and shot down, and all sorts of media on the topic.

I was born and bred in Texas, but I have Yankee parents. It was a huge shock to me when I hit high school and realized 95% of my friends were part of households that owned guns. My parents do not and never have owned firearms. Nor do they plan on owning guns in the future. I've been to ranges before and had a ton of fun shooting! I'm not anti-gun, but I'm not pro-gun either. I'm pro-discussion. America has a problem with gun violence and it's time we took a serious look at our country and stop ignoring the problem. And as always, I don't think you should participate in the discussion unless you know the facts.

Here's some things you should know before you start spouting your beliefs:

• This isn't a democrats vs republicans thing. All over the country, you will find people from both ends of the political spectrum on both sides of the issue. Some high-profile examples of this are Gabby Giffords, former Republican Representative, who is calling for stricter gun laws and former Democratic Representative Joe Baca who is very supportive of the NRA. 
• There are examples in other countries/cultures of gun control working and examples in other countries/cultures of gun control failing. It's not a worthy argument to bring those up in defense of your side. NONE of those cultures are the same as America's culture. And there's plenty of examples showing opposite results. We won't know if gun control works in this culture unless we decide to try it.
• The ad the NRA put out attacking Obama for having gun-carrying agents protect his daughters is completely illogical. When we don't protect the First Family, we open ourselves up to terrible things happening (Terrorism is alive and well in the world). Before he was president, those girls did not have that protection (despite living in Chicago, the city with probably the most gun violence in America right now). EVERY president (Republican and Democrat) has the same protection.
• The second amendment (the right to bear arms) was adopted in  the 16th century, when technology was much different. Back then, guns weren't capable of firing as quickly as they are now. Colonists could probably fire a shot a minute. The second amendment also talks about why Americans should have the right to bear arms: to keep a well regulated militia. We have one of the best military in the world, so when people try to invoke the second amendment as a way of justifying civilian gun ownership, they're missing the point.
• If you're focusing just on mass shootings, you're also missing that gun violence occurs everyday in America. When the Sandy Hook shooting happened, it was a wake up call just by numbers alone, but you can't forget homicides, etc.
• There was an off-duty marine in the Aurora theater when that shooting happened. She did not have her gun on her but she said she wouldn't have shot anyway. She could have been mistaken as a second shooter or missed and created more victims in the chaos. Please don't say that having more citizens carry guns would eliminate mass shootings. You can find her story in the February 2013 issue of Glamor.
• There's several different pieces of federal legislation being debated right now. There is discussion on requiring a background check on all gun transactions. There's discussion on limiting magazine capacity for civilians. There's discussion on punishment for crimes involving guns.
• The United States has more guns per capita than any other country in the world (Time Magazine's January 28, 2013 issue has a lot of good information on this). Also, gun crimes have decreased in the US pretty steadily in the past 10 years.

Regardless of how you feel about guns, now is the time to have a discussion on it! Do your research, and then find legislation you want to support or kill (pun intended). But please don't go in without doing your research!

New Years vs Lent

Breaking bad habits is for New Years. Lent, however, is so much more. Lent is about spiritual growth.

Yes, giving up something is supposed to imitate Jesus fasting in the dessert for 40 days all while resisting temptation. But do you know what Jesus was doing while fasting? Check out Luke 4 or Matthew 4 for a moment.

Jesus had just been baptized. The Holy Spirit led him into the desert to fast. While he was there, he was praying. He was preparing for the work he had been given by his Heavenly Father. He was using the time to grow closer to God. He was fasting for clarity of mind and spirit. He wasn't alone in the wilderness, either. He was filled with the Holy Spirit. And after he resisted temptation, angels came and ministered to him. Moses and Elijah also both fasted for 40 days in preparation for great works for God (Exodus 24:18 and 1 Kings 19:8). They spent the time in prayer.

The idea of fasting or giving up a vice is about breaking attachments to material things and turning your focus instead towards God. This lenten season, think about what you're doing to grow closer to God, not what you're giving up. Instead of giving up, you could also think about taking something on.

I'm not saying your plan to give up chocolate/soda/fillintheblank is bad. What I am saying is that each time you are tempted to go back to that material thing, take a moment to pray or to read your Bible.  Faith needs to be tested to grow strong. My faith was tested when my brother died, but now I understand my faith better. Take a moment to think about how God provided for Jesus when he resisted temptation and remember that God will provide for all of your needs. When you are tempted, answer temptation with God's Word. Don't just rely on your own strength, rely on God to help you past the temptation.We need to know Scripture well enough to answer our doubts and fears and temptations with it. The sword of the Spirit is the Word of God (Ephesians 6:17).

This year for lent, I'm doing a daily devotional in an effort to spend more time immersed in the Word of God.

KT's Salsa

This recipe was created by me by sifting through lots of other people's recipes. It is a mild (but DELICIOUS) salsa. If you like a hotter version, add more chilli powder or a diced jalapeno.

Ingredients:

• 7 tomatoes, diced
• 3 bell peppers (I use one orange, one yellow, and one green), diced
• 1/2 of a large yellow onion, diced
• 2 T salt
• 2 T cumin
• 2 T chilli powder
• 1/4 C fresh cilantro, diced
• 1 T freshly minced garlic
• 1/2 C of vinegar

Simply mix the ingredients in a bowl and refrigerate for a sweet, chunky salsa. If you prefer to have a smoother salsa, puree or blend instead of dicing.