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 - Endorsed - Indifferent - Contested
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| The Nashville Statement
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Name:Daniel
Home: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
About Me: I used to believe that evolution was reasonable, that homosexuality was genetic, and that people became Christians because they couldn't deal with the 'reality' that this life was all there was. I used to believe, that if there was a heaven - I could get there by being good - and I used to think I was more or less a good person. I was wrong on all counts. One day I finally had my eyes opened and I saw that I was not going to go to heaven, but that I was certainly going to suffer the wrath of God for all my sin. I saw myself as a treasonous rebel at heart - I hated God for creating me just to send me to Hell - and I was wretched beyond my own comprehension. Into this spiritual vacuum Jesus Christ came and he opened my understanding - delivering me from God's wrath into God's grace. I was "saved" as an adult, and now my life is hid in Christ. I am by no means sinless, but by God's grace I am a repenting believer - a born again Christian.
My complete profile...
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Daniel's posts are almost always pastoral and God centered. I appreciate and am challenged by them frequently. He has a great sense of humor as well.
- Marc Heinrich
His posts are either funny or challenging. He is very friendly and nice.
- Rose Cole
[He has] good posts, both the serious like this one, and the humorous like yesterday. [He is] the reason that I have restrained myself from making Canadian jokes in my posts.
- C-Train
This post contains nothing that is of any use to me. What were you thinking? Anyway, it's probably the best I've read all day.
- David Kjos
Daniel, nicely done and much more original than Frank the Turk.
- Jonathan Moorhead
There are some people who are smart, deep, or funny. There are not very many people that are all 3. Daniel is one of those people. His opinion, insight and humor have kept me coming back to his blog since I first visited earlier this year.
- Carla Rolfe
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| A Close Shave... |
 When I was growing up (before I had ever heard the gospel) I was a fan of what is now called "classic" rock and roll. When I learned to play guitar, I began playing Led Zepellin and Pink Floyd tunes - almost exlusively. Later I discovered Hendrix, and then Stevie Ray Vaughan (who was responsible for turning my attention from Rock and Roll to the Blues. After SRV, I was into all the old delta blues guys, Howling Wolf, Blind Lemon Jefferson , Blind Willy Johnson, Blind Boy Fuller (apparently blues wasn't good for the eyesight...), Big Bill Broonzy, really everyone on the chess label - and of course, Robert Johnson. Nevertheless, my taste in hair cuts remained true to my "classic rock" roots - that is, I have always liked having my hair "long."
My Christian testimony begins at about 19 - that is when I first heard the gospel and believed, but that is not when I was empowered to obey. I didn't read my bible, didn't really know how to be a Christian, and the first time I sinned after I had given my life to Jesus, I thought that I had somehow "blown" my salvation - that by giving into temptation I had somehow destroyed my only hope. I wasn't in a congregation and I knew no other believers, so I didn't have anyone to set me straight. I still loved the Lord, but I felt that I was certainly going to go to hell now because I knew for certain that God's Spirit had witnessed to my spirit that I was saved, but now that fellowship was broken. I didn't know enough to realize that the fellowship could be restored through repentance - and so I just gave up. The next dozen years of my life you would never have known that I had ever heard the gospel. Thank our Lord who is rich in mercy and kindness because years ago he brought into my life believers through whom Chirst was able to direct me in the way that I should go.
It is also relevant to note that when I was a lad I was in "cadets" - I don't know what you call it in the states, but up here in Canada children aged 13-18 can join cadets (army, navy, or air) and train in all the art of soldiering - by that I mean marching, marching, and more marching. There were some cool benefits to being a cadet (I was an air cadet) - most notably you could use the rifle range, you got to go on familiarization flights in cool military aircraft left over from world war II, and you could even get your pilot's license (I was a fool to quit before I got mine). Mostly however, you just learned how to march, and how to stand straight. There are many cadet stories I could tell, but it is enough to say that I was given demerits for my hair length once, and so I shaved my head for the next week. Even the cadets laughed. It was hard to take at school - but you would expect my fellow cadets to cut me some slack. But no.
I kept the hair short until I had a falling out with the commanding officer, and left the unit. After that I let it grow. My hair grew to shoulder length when I was still fifteen, and remained that way until I was about 28 or so. At that time I began to go to college, and on a whim I decided to shave bald. My wife was not impressed.
Five years ago I started working for the government - and because of equal opportunity and tolerence I was allowed to grow my hair as long as I wanted. However, in the mean time I had returned to the Lord and joined myself to a conservative church - one that felt that long hair on a man was effeminate.
This last year however, I began to let my hair grow again - mostly because my schedule wasn't lining up with the barber very well - but partly in rebellion against the legalistic mindset in my church. There were a few people who were already starting to comment on it (especially as I am a deacon). I don't buy into the "God hates long hair on a man" mentality (remember the Nazarites?), but I also don't want to be a stumbling block to anyone - and as one of the other deacons seemed to have a real problem with it, I was waiting for an opportunity to cut it.
So yesterday, my wife gave me permission to shave my head. To be sure, my wife who formerly hated baldness, now likes it, so I say "gave me permission" but in reality I knew it was something that she would prefer. So I shaved it all off.
Pretty spiff eh? I wish I had done it earlier as part of my "this is what I look like right now" post - but better late than never! |
posted by Daniel @
9:09 AM
 
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| 10 Comments: |
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Wow, very nice. I hope you're keeping all your old profile icons. :-) It might make for a good "best of" show someday. :-)
I'm not sure what they call, "the cadets" down here. I think that the "Junior Air Corps" is similar to what you were in.
V-Word: Skqsbsdy - A town in New England.
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I really have to get my hands on the image of me with the rainbow hat thing - it was priceless.
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You're a man of many looks. It's going to take some getting use to, I'm accustomed to seeing you with hair.
You started to get into your testimony a little bit, do you have your entire testimony posted?
Godspeed,
Jason
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I don't have it in it's entirety - but you can read it here. Sorry about the length.
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Hey, you're that Canadian band guy on David Letterman! I recognize you now!
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1 Cor 11:14- "Does not even nature itself teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a dishonor to him?"
Daniel, it's good to see you with honor now :-)
Hey, when is David Kjos going to start a blog?
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Jonathan - It is good to be honorable!
That verse you quoted has been one that I have spent much time considering. I cannot read it without adding verse sixteen:
"But if one is inclined to be contentious, we have no other practice, nor have the churches of God. "
I would hate to neglect the grace that Paul included when he qualified his remarks just two verses down.
I sometimes worry that I am prine to elevate my own personal preference to the level of divine mandate. In this case, I do not want to teach my own preference (long hair) as being mandated by God, nor would I want to teach short hair as a mandate even were that my preference - unless the scripture provided a sure instruction in the matter. In this case there is no instruction, just a reflection that Paul makes to bolster what he is saying about women present in the congregation who flaunt their own lack of submission.
I want to be very careful of course that I don't make myself blind to any genuine "hair length" mandate, but as far as I read it, the reference is made to contrast a woman uncovering her head in church - a posture that has more value in its cultural significance than in the mechanical gesture.
As such, I am personally wary about over stating the hair length thing. I am not married to my opinion or anything - but I was inclined to mention it (perhaps that says more about me than I know?)
I think Dave should have a blog by the way.
Dave - why don't you start a blog. I will read it.
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you deffinetly pull the look of well bro
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Daniel,
Shaving your head can be surprisingly empowering.
Mine would still be bald, too, but my head is pretty big and it crowns slightly to the left. It always looked like I was leaning.
XOXO
Mensa Reject
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mensa - I have a friend who has the same problem with his beard!
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Wow, very nice. I hope you're keeping all your old profile icons. :-) It might make for a good "best of" show someday. :-)
I'm not sure what they call, "the cadets" down here. I think that the "Junior Air Corps" is similar to what you were in.
V-Word: Skqsbsdy - A town in New England.