I got to thinking about Jack Alderman. In all likelihood, today is his last day on earth. He is scheduled to be executed tomorrow. Alderman has requested his final meal include fried chicken, 12 fried shrimp, fries, tossed salad with Russian or French dressing, a pint of cherry or strawberry ice cream, and iced tea. That got me thinking about what I would do if I knew I had exactly 24 hours to live. If I knew I were going to die tomorrow, how would I spend today? Several things became important to me 1) I would get up early before my wife and daughters and go to worship, probably to a Catholic mass since they offer worship most days early in the morning. Simple quiet prayerful time in the presence of God. Meditating on His love and His promises. Envisioning His heart. 2) I would want to spend the day with my wife and two daughters. Since I am the one dying tomorrow, I get to pick what we do. Hike in the mountains of Western North Carolina on a trail that means a lot to me. Looking Glass Rock. 3 miles up, 3 miles down. Breathtaking view at the top where you see nothing but forest - no people, no towns, no cars. Just unblemished nature as far as the eye can see. 3) We would descend and miraculously end up in Macon, Georgia, to eat at Tucker's BBQ, a little known joint south of town. Sandwich, fries, stew, and sweet tea. 4) Probably spend the evening sitting on Coleman Hill in Macon for personal memories of the place. 5) Stay up as late as I was able (I am not known for my ability to be alert much past 11:00) and watch movies with my wife and girls. 6) Say a quiet prayer together. That's my last day on earth.

Christoper Scott Emmett is scheduled to die tonight. Jack Alderman is scheduled to die on Friday. Emmett in Virginia, and Alderman in Georgia. Both by lethal injection. Alderman has requested his final meal include fried chicken, 12 fried shrimp, fries, tossed salad with Russian or French dressing, a pint of cherry or strawberry ice cream, and iced tea. Not sure why he did not ask for Fincher's BBQ which is not all that far from the Georgia death row. But that is his own business. He is a human being. Georgia's Supreme Court refused to postpone Alderman's execution until the US Supreme Court rules whether death by lethal injection constitutes "cruel and unusual punishment." The High Court recently agreed to hear a case from Kentucky from two inmates claiming that the three-drug cocktail used to kill inmates is excruciatingly painful and therefore unconstitutional. I cannot believe that we are debating this. Now we are trying to find a "humane" way to execute criminals? QUESTION: What is a humane way to kill someone? ANSWER: There is no such thing. The death penalty is wrong for so many reasons not the least of which is that life is not ours to make and not ours to take. The death penalty costs more to implement than does life imprisonment (Witness the present case of Brian Nichols), the death penalty is usually applied to the poorest criminals who cannot afford good counsel, and the death penalty does not accomplish vengeance or satisfaction (it merely creates one more horrific death to add to the pile). Please do not tell me that you can see Jesus walking up to the chair and pulling the switch - on in this case, up to the gurney and slipping in the needle. Alderman and Emmett have been convicted of heinous crimes. They no longer pose a risk to society. Leave them in prison to reflect on their guilt. Leave them there until they die of natural causes. THAT is justice.

OK, I admit it. I watched Dr. Phil today. I feel better now that I have confessed. Not sure that OJ feels better, however. In the book, IF I Did It: Confessions of the Killer, making its way ever so glacially to publication, OJ shares details and facts about the murder of his ex-wife, Nicole, and Ron Goldman, that no one could ever know lest they were at the murder itself. So OJ, always looking for $, narrates a book (it would have been too time-consuming to write it himself, and he is looking for the real killers in his spare time)for one of three reasons: 1) He needs money - that is true 2) He desires more publicity - possibly true 3) His internal conscience is desperately trying to find some way to process what he did but was acquitted of - this is my theory Edgar Allan Poe's "Tell-Tale Heart" shows how powerful our guilty consciences are. And OJ's new book is the latest proof. He HAD to find a way to confess. His sanity is on the line. Somehow he has to get the confession out. So he does it "hypothetically" in a book IF I did it. Confession is good for the soul. The only thing worse than doing something wrong is carrying the guilt around inside you with nowhere to vent it. It eats your soul from the inside out. That is why confession is such an important part of the spiritual life. It is also why OJ "wrote" this book. Now, with his latest arrest in Vegas, it looks like OJ will have plenty of time to process his guilty conscience in prison. And while he is there, I hope he gets to watch Dr. Phil.

Intolerant Crabby Boring Judgmental Words used to describe Christians. By nearly everyone who is not a Christian in our nation. Gabe Lyons has done good research as has the Barna Group regarding how Christians are perceived in America. And the results are not pretty - too political, too anti-gay, too judgmental, AGAINST more than things than they are FOR, and the list goes on and on. Lyons and Barna conclude that we Christians have an image problem. I disagree. We do not have an image problem. We have a conversion problem. The problem does not lie in how people perceive us as Christians. The problem lies in the depth of our transformation in Christ Jesus. Too many of us swim in the deep waters of this materialistic, consumeristic, self-serving culture and do so without ever giving it a second thought. We pursue the American dream without considering how our faith in Christ enters the equation of our lives in any real way. What we need is not to change our behavior or the perception of that behavior. What we need is faith. Real, genuine, authentic, deep faith. Faith that will change us from the inside out. We cannot change ourselves. Only God can do that. Only then will we be perceived for love and mission rather than politics and judgmentalism. Faith transforms. Completely.

My friend (yes, I only have one) shared with me this week that his 8 year old son was the only boy in his school class not to receive an invitation to a classmate's birthday party. The birthday boy passed out his invitations in class - to everyone but my friend's son, "Johnny." Are you kidding me? My wife taught first grade for years and learned early on to make it plain to parents - if you are gonna pass out invitations in class, invite everyone. If not, invite folks privately. But, really, it is not the teacher's responsibility. It is the parents'. When my friend called the birthday boy's parents to inquire about what happened and why, the father was billigerent. "Our son doesn't want your son at the party. We let him choose who comes to his party." Fine, then pass out the invitations privately or by phone. Have a heart. Even better, be a PARENT for heaven's sake, and teach your son to have class (no pun intended). Who's running the house? Mom and Dad or the kids? Parents know the difference.

This Paul Henss story is remarkable. 85 year old man living outside Atlanta and it turns out that he was a guard at Dachau, one of the worst concentration camps in Nazi Germany. He evidently trained dogs to attack anyone trying to escape. When he came to the USA in 1955, he simply said that he wanted to forget the war and no one knew of his role in the Dachau camp. He has lived here for 52 years. Working in a meat packing company in Milwaukee, then retiring in Atlanta to be near grandkids and family. And now he has been discovered by the feds. He is subject to deportation proceedings because of his role at Dachau. He now claims that he "did not know" what was happening at the concentration camp he worked at. YOu know what he needs? Confession. The Holocaust survivors who despise him just might show some mercy and compassion if he came out and said, "I'm sorry. I really am. I have regretted my actions for the past 60 years. Please forgive me." Confession would help everyone move forward. Can you imagine carrying that guilt around for 60 years? All your adult life? Confession would advance his own healing as well as that of the rest of us who were horrified by the Holocaust atrocities and the folks who claim not to have known what was happening. But, instead, it looks like Paul Henss will be recalcitrant and combative to fight his deportation. For that, I am sorry.

The emails have started arriving. Oprah's show this week on sex and "open marriages" really lit a fire for folks. Holly and Greg shared their view of marriage - it need not be exclusive or "closed." Holly has begun having a sexual relationship with one of their close family friends (very close I suppose). Greg is OK with that and is in the market for a little external stimulation himself. He feels good that Holly has "that much more love in her life." No, it is not love; it is lust. There is a difference. And indulging lust outside the marriage is a death knell for the marriage itself. Sadly, my wager is that Greg and Holly will not be together five years from now. Their openness will lead to their demise as a couple. Love does not grow on a foundation of lust. Marriage is at its best when 2 become 1: physically, emotionally, and sexually. Whole, healthy marriages do not introduce outside persons into the intimacy of the relationship - whether emotionally or sexually. A good marriage is a thing of beauty and a gift from God. A crumbling marriage is painful to watch. I will pray, not praise, for Greg and Holly.

Ahmadinejad's appearance and speech at Columbia University are just too much to resist. First, I applaud Columbia for hosting Ahmadinejad and giving him the opportunity to express his beliefs and convictions. Free speech is free speech. The only way to eradicate hate-filled, benighted ignorance is to expose it. Ahmadinejad has nothing to offer the world but hatred, Islamic supremacy and oppression. Second, I wish Columbia and other leading American colleges and universities would actually practice free speech in their classrooms, forums, and course offerings. That is the sadness of all this - most American colleges have succumbed to political correctness so deeply that non-Marxist ideas and discussions are virtually verboten. In fact, the American college is the last place that Marxism still finds a foothold. Virtue, values, and moral clarity are usually eschewed for relativism, anything goes, and "if it feels good, do it." Moreover, the anti-faith bias of most colleges makes it next to impossible to have a reasonable conversation about faith and issues of the heart and spirit. More often than not, Christian speakers are shouted down or not even invited in the first place. Free speech? I think not. What is good for Ahmadinejad is good for any proponent of ideas. That is what true universities do. Third, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has reminded us again that the internal compass of Islam is flawed, even scary. Nations run by Islamic supremacists are scary places - violent, intolerant and cruel. Not so much because of the rulers but because of the core DNA of Mohammed and the political movement that he started.

Today has been a great day. Great show on Newsradio WOOD 1300. Great afternoon of golf at the Railside Club in Grand Rapids - 70 degrees, sunny. New friends in a city I have not been to before. All in all, a great day. Caused me to think about the blessings I enjoy and give thanks for. Cultivating gratitude is a good habit because my nature is to take things for granted. Here are 10 in no particular order: 1) My wife - I married well. 2) My girls - healthy, intelligent and delightful 3) Faith - the gift of Jesus Christ has transformed my life 4) Freedom - we are lucky to live in this free land. May we preserve that freedom and not give in to the temptation to have government control everything. 5) Income - I have all that I need and more. Most Americans are within the wealthiest 5% of the world's population. 6) A full stomach - a large proportion of the world worries about food. I do not. 7) Good friends - Hard to describe how rich our family is with good friends upon whom we can count in any situation 8) Purpose - My life has a clear direction. 9) Family - My wife and I both come from families who have loved us unconditionally 10) Grace - God's immense grace. 10)

First time ever in Grand Rapids, Michigan. I am here filling in for three days on the Rick and Scott show on NewsRadio WOOD 1300. What a beautiful city! Lots of historic architecture and a marvelous Grand River running right down the middle of the city. But it will be 43 degrees tonight. WoW! No kidding. However, tomorrow promises to be better with a high of 77. But 43 in September. We had a great day today doing the show on Islam and the faith of the candidates for President. Tomorrow, we turn to the Grand Rapids police scandal of cheating police officers and the dispatcher who turned the tables on her cheating husband. Adultery always destroys relationships, often beyond repair. Glad to be in Grand Rapids. New friends in a cold place!