Man of Steel

Superman. There's no other superhero boys desire more to be when growing up. 'It’s a bird, it's a plane. No, it's Superman!' Music to any small kid's ears while day dreaming of America's oldest comic book hero.

I grew up watching Christopher Reeve's 1980 classic Superman: The movie. My dad introduced the flying capped superhero to me when I was 3 years old. By 4 I knew all the words to the important bits of the movie. By 5 I had my own suit: red cape and yellow undies. So, with Hollywood's Superman reboot coming up in a few day’s time, Man of Steel, I thought I would share my story:

My mom was so cool, when I was 5, I had both Spider-man and Superman costumes. One day I decided to take them with me to pre-school in Port Elizabeth. I packed each one into a yellow Checkers packet. As soon as I arrived I asked my best friend who'd he'd like to be. Just think, two normal boys, two nobodies - instantly transformed into two superheroes! This is what it was all about. Surely! My friend chose Spider-man. We changed in the bathroom at break time. As soon as we were kitted out, we ran screaming out into the yard, with great yells of excitement, ready to defend whoever needed our help. You never quite know what baddies could get up to in our playground forts and hide outs. We were ready for anything! Jason began jumping from tyre to tyre and then climbed a net that hung from a large jungle gym - showing off his Spider-man abilities. Most of the kids were caught up in the fanfare of it all. Some clapped for us. Others ran away. We didn’t care, the adrenaline rush was awesome!

It didn’t take long to realize that my friend Spidey was getting all the attention. "What exactly can Superman do, while Spider-man memorizes everyone with his rope climbing?" A thought popped into my head. It was simple. What does Superman do which no other superhero can do? Fly. I eyed out the highest point possible, the play ground's 50 step slide. Once you’ve climbed 50 steps, you are a long way from mother earth. It took an age to climb to the top. Why not? I had the suit on. I had the cape. When Clark Kent dons the suit, he can fly! So why not I? I climbed the slide, step by step, fearless as Superman himself! I was about to do what no 5 year old had ever done...fly. I reached my summit and called out to my peers in the playground "Hey, look at me." With that I stretched out my left arm, in perfect flying poise. And I took the leap, fulfilling my childhood dream, and launched. And I flew. Straight to the ground. From what I was told, I didn't fly. Well, not for long. I hit the ground hard. A teacher came running. My parents got the call and I landed up in St George’s hospital. I stayed there for two weeks with concussion and internal bleeding. Not quite what I had in mind when I took the leap!

As for my suit…who knows where that went? My mom probably had something to do with that.

I must admit, some 30 years later, I still catch myself dreaming that same dream: flying like my superhero, Superman. I wasn't the first kid who thought he could fly. I’m sure I won't be the last. 

Money is tight!

It's tough people!! I'm sure I don't have to tell YOU that. But it's funny how we sometimes think it's only us that's feeling the financial pinch, when in fact, everyone is. Your friends. Your neighbour. Your drinking buddy. That rude oke at work. We're all feeling the pinch and have been for the past 12 months. Hardly anyone is receiving any salary increases at work and yet monthly expenses are rising fast. I must admit, financially - things are tough, and living within your means is a lot harder than it sounds. 

My wife and I really do try. But then the car steering wheel gave problems - R3,100. Then the gear box packed up - R11,800. Then the licences' expired - R740. Then a SARS payment - R7,200. Electricity has gone up monumentally! Petrol has shot up by 40% over the past 4 years....and it's still rising. With the exchange rate shooting up over R10 to the US dollar, our petrol is going to jump even higher and will hit the R13.00 a litre hurdle in the next few days, which in turn will raise the prices of our food. I don't mean to be funny, but a loaf of bread, a 2lt Milk, some vegetables, some mince and 2 minute Noodles came to over R120 the other night!

Think about that for a moment. If you have 2 kids like we do, a 2lt Milk and a loaf of bread only lasts 2 days. Those two items cost R17.99 and R11.99 respectively. Our family is spending R450 a month on milk and bread. That's without putting anything on the bread yet! A jar of peanut butter and margarine will set you back a further R60. I could literally go on and on....!! Luxury items like a TEX or a packet of CHEESE CURLS are further and further away...It's tough people. It's really tough.

I did something naughty the other day. I was behind a 45 year old guy at the ATM. He finished drawing money and walked off. He left his slip behind. I glanced at it and almost fell over. He withdrew R300. He was withdrawing it from his credit card account with was R135,000 IN THE RED!!. And I thought I had problems. I turned back to take a look at this guy, but it was too late. He had climbed into his white BMW, a 2010 model I think, and drove off. 

Don't fool yourselves either - those that look like they haven't got problems because they still buying clothes, driving smart cars and eating out - the majority is on credit. They spending the bank's money. They just not sure how to curve their lifestyles to within their budgets. Did you know that58% of people are in over 3 months arrears with at least one account. That's scary!  

I don't see the pinch ending any time soon. It's tough and it seems to be getting tougher. I just keep reminding myself and my wife that we need to stay on top of things - don't spend more than what we earn, live within our means and be very wise with our spending - when the car breaks and other things come up which we can't control - it's in those times where we trust the Lord even more. I can't imagine anything changing unless He changes it. Because  right now it's seriously pear-shaped!

The "Get Rich" Gospel....where can I throw up?

The Prosperity Gospel has got to be one of the top 3 in Christianity's Worst Contributions to the World. To put it in a word: Disgusting. Sick. Vomit. Awful. (Sorry, couldn't make my mind up on the most appropriate one.) Now before you stone me, let me tell you why this false gospel is one of the biggest embarrassments to the Church of Jesus Christ.

"God doesn't want you to drive a Volkswagen. God doesn't want you to settle with a one bedroom apartment. He has so much more for you."

"I have been blessed with enough money...you don't understand, I just bought a ring, this one I'm wearing, for $12,000. My wife's dog back home is worth $35,000. And when people drive past my mansion and see my Rolls Royce in the driveway, they know there is a God in heaven."

"And if you sow a $1000 seed right now, God is going to do something extraordinary in your life this year of 2012. God is going to cancel your debt, he's going to open doors to such wealth and blessing that you won't have enough room to contain it. Just go ahead and sow your seed to unlock God's favor over your life this year."

I don't even have to make this stuff up. It makes me want to get sick when I read these quotes made in the name of Jesus and to think what people, who are desperate to get out of their tough financial situations, will do. They will continue to struggle and wonder why God isn't blessing them with debt cancellation while the 'man of God' buys another ring, dog, mansion or Rolls Royce.

The message is the same "Give so that you will get." It's an investor's dream investment scheme. You tell investor that he can get 30 times, 60 times or even 100 times what he puts in....and he'll be busting down the door to throw his money at it. I mean, who wouldn't?? Only a total idiot wouldn't. The only problem is that even idiots know a pyramid scheme when they hear one. You might get caught once and lose some money, but never again.

But these Prosperity Preachers have been going at it for over 40 years now, and people are still falling for these lies. And before you accuse me of pointing the finger, I admit, I was one of them. I was 17 when I began watching the programs of Kenneth Hagin, Creflo Dollar, Kenneth Hagin and Benny Hinn. I was caught up in this stuff for about 6 years. I saw with my own eyes how families got poorer and struggled even more with unpaid bills because out of blind faith they gave their rent money and kid's school fees to the 'man of God' who demanded they sow above their means in order to see God do a miracle..

Give more and you'll get more. You can have your heart's desires. God wants you to be blessed. He wants you to be rich. He wants you to have the best of everything. Give, give, give.....and you will reap a harvest of wealth, a good measure, pressed down, shaken and running over. It's funny, but when I study the scriptures, I see a different picture altogether preached to the New Testament believer:

"Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world-the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life-is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever." - 1John 2:15-17

It cannot be clearer than that. The very thing these 'men of God' are telling me to desire is the very thing scripture is telling me to turn away from. It's a sad, sick and embarressing gospel that is being allowed to masquerade as the true gospel of Jesus. It has caused pain, lack and disillusionment in many believers who truly love Jesus but can't understand why He doesn't take their credit card debt away when they give their $1000.

I thank God that he is faithful and has delivered me from that satanic message that was fueled by greed and world desires. I believe that my God looks after me because I'm a son of His, and not because I gave my rent money to the church. I give where he tells me, often to my local church, the place where I and my family are connected, with the motivation to see our community make a difference in our city to reach the lost. I give out of love, not out of a promise of a harvest. Have I seen financial miracles in my life?? TOO MANY TO COUNT. Have they been a result of my giving? Who knows, maybe. Maybe not. The point is, my faith for having my needs (not greedy) met lie in the love of God towards me and in Him seeing me as His son. He takes care of His kids. My faith doesn't lie in how much I give when the offering basket comes around.

I hope that in the coming years, the church will rise up as one, and flush this sadistic gospel down the toilet because that is the only place where crap really belongs.