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Amendment One Issue Creates 1st Admendment vs Benifits Challenge In NC

Amendment One Issue Creates 1st Admendment vs Benifits Challenge In NC. It's no secret I have a soft spot in my heart for North Carolina. Last week was not pretty in the Old North State.

I grew up in North Carolina. I have a lot of friends who still live there. But this is one occasion I'm glad I don't live there and didn't have to vote. Judging from the fiery stream of Facebook posts that appeared in my newsfeed, Amendment One nearly tore the state apart. For those of you who somehow managed to miss this,

Amendment One

amends North Carolina's state constitution to define marriage solely as a union between a man and woman. Twenty-nine other states have adopted similar legislation—including Kansas where I live now, and Hawaii has given its legislature the power to limit marriage to heterosexual couples.

My faith precludes me from altering the Biblical definition of marriage. A reformed view of the Bible doesn't support homosexuality any more than it supports lying, cheating, adultery, murder, lust, or stealing. I couldn't vote against NC Amendment One and maintain a clear conscience and reverence for God. Nor could I vote against it and seriously support the First Amendment right of religious liberty. But I have gay friends who are dear to me. They are devastated by the passage of Amendment One. They feel the state has left them without any legal protection. They feel hated by their neighbors. How could I vote to pass something that hurts them?

I wonder. Might there have been a third option? One that respected the majority of voters' convictions by protecting the definition of marriage as between a man and a woman while at the same time acknowledging the status and needs of the minority? One that clearly defined marriage as heterosexual and also recognized same-sex unions as sanctioned by the state not the church?

This isn't a new idea. I don't know if it's the answer. Some will say a compromise takes it too far or not far enough. Criticize me all you want for not understanding the issue. I don't understand it fully. I can't. I've never been rejected, belittled, or discriminated against because of my sexual orientation. On the other hand, I've come awfully close to being ridiculed because of my faith when it comes to this issue. My heart aches when people who've been friends for years snipe at each other and kick civility to the curb. I'm troubled when normally quiet folks are bashed for respectfully speaking their opinions or the viewpoint of their churches. I bristle when pundits who live nowhere near the South declare it backwards and steeped in prejudice. I hurt when my friends hurt regardless of whether they are straight or gay.

The people of North Carolina followed the rule of law to approve Amendment One as it was presented to them by their elected representatives. I believe most of them did so with heavy hearts. There are citizens on both sides of the argument who harbor hate, prejudice, and fear. That's obvious from the things said and written about this issue. But the majority who approved Amendment One didn't vote out of hate for their fellow North Carolinians. They voted to protect the definition of marriage and the First Amendment right of religious expression.

Yes, I'm glad I didn't have to vote. It's easy to make sweeping statements from a few states away. It's much different when the controversy is in your own backyard and you're suddenly at odds with your neighbors and friends. The pastor reminded me from the pulpit this past Sunday that the Gospel message is one of Truth and Grace. I'm not sure what that looks like when it comes to Amendment One, but I believe there must be room for both Truth and Grace in how we deal with this issue going forward.

In his post "A Few Like You": Will the Church Be the Church for Homosexual Christians?, Wesley Hill quotes novelist Marilynne Robinson's challenging question: "Will people shelter and nourish and humanize one another?" Given the chance, given the example, given Truth and Grace, I believe they can. I hope and pray they will. questions to spark comments:

What do you think about Amendment One? If you live in North Carolina, how has this issue impacted you? How will you be an example of Truth and Grace?

bio: Aimee Whetstine grew up in North Carolina. She and her family now live in Kansas where she writes for the

Everyday Epistle

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Seven Formulas For Business Success

VISUALIZE YOUR GOALS There are seven formulas for business success. Number one, set a specific goal and visualize it as a reality. Play the picture of your goal as already realized on the screen of your mind over and over again. Number two, look for a problem you can solve with a product or service that is high quality and good value. All successful businesses are based on products or services that are high quality and good value. Number three, start small and learn your business thoroughly. Be patient. Invest time rather than a lot of money. BOOTSTRAP YOUR WAY TO SUCCESS One of the best ways to build a business is to start off on a bootstrap. This means that you start off with very little money and you grow your business with the money that you earn in the business, rather than outside financing, borrowing, loans from friends and so on. TEST, TEST, TEST Number four, test every major move before you invest in it. Test, test, test. Don't plunge into a business. Move ahead carefully, one step at a time. Number five, expand on the basis of your successes, out of your profits, as you move along. In other words, only expand your business on money that you've earned in the business, not on borrowed capital. PICK YOUR PEOPLE CAREFULLY Number six, carefully select the people to help you expand and grow. The biggest mistakes you'll ever make will be in picking the wrong people to work with, so be very, very careful in picking the people you're going to work with in your business. USE FINANCIAL LEVERAGE And number seven, use financial leverage. Financial leverage is business borrowing, lines of credit from the bank, which are based on the cash flow from your successful business. The whole aim of starting a business is to develop a consistent, predictable source of cash flow in excess of cost and expenses and then to hold on to the money. Banks will lend you all the money that you can service as debt with your cash flow. START OFF PART TIME One final thing that you can do, and I've recommended that many people do this over the years, is if you're starting off with no money, go to work part time for a business in a field that interests you. It's a valuable form of on-the-job training. Work evenings or work weekends. Or work on your holidays if you like. Sometimes a business that looks tremendous from the outside will look terrible once you start working for it. But sometimes when you start working for a business, you start to get an intimate understanding of how it works and you get insights on how you can improve it. LEARN WHAT YOU NEED TO LEARN Remember this, though: Most businesses fail because of managerial incompetence. So take the time to learn what you need to know to succeed. Be patient. The time you invest before you start will pay off over and over again in the months and years ahead. ACTION EXERCISES Here are two things you can do immediately to implement these formulas for business success: First, be prepared. The number one reason that people succeed in starting their own businesses is that they have the knowledge and experience, in advance, that they need to succeed. Do your homework. Second, start small. Some people think that they can be successful faster by putting all their savings at risk at the very beginning. The opposite is true. Start small and grow out of your cash flow from successful operations. Live your Dreams   by Brian Tracy  

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New Years Bash

Vyzion Internet Radio's own DJ Sunny hosts NYE at Palace International.  There is so many things to do in raleigh on NYE, but if you party with Vyzion and DJ Sunny, you are guaranteed a good time. Book DJ Sunny