I have been challenged to dump ice water on my head for a good cause. Please accept this blog as ice water and my lack of participation. I normally keep these anti-social thoughts to myself because I know they upset people. In fact I know that this post will make some people very angry. But you forced me to respond. I know that I am a tiny minority on this, but here it is…

First, I pledged to myself a long time ago to not give money to organizations that exist to build up themselves while giving out a small percentage of money raised to whatever their name is actually attached too. Remember the fallout when the United Way was giving out money donated for 9/11 to things unrelated to the 9/11 tragedy? What about the mess more recently with Susan G. Komen when Karen Handel was forced to resign after trying to stop money flowing from the Komen foundation to Planned Parenthood? Lets take a look into the ALDS breakdown chart from their website.

Only 27% of their budget actually goes to research. Just think about that for a few minutes and let me know if that % works for you. Next I want to know what kind of research they are doing. Thankfully they have a chart that breaks that down and sure enough I find stem cells.

I want to know of those 11 projects on stem cells are any of them based on embryonic research? Or are they all adult stem cell research. Knowing the types of people that run organizations like this I can safely assume they have a mix that includes embryonic stem cell research. Read here and here if you want to know why I might be opposed to that kind of research.

Next up is the largest section of the budget “public and professional education”. Why would that be questionable? Because that is most likely the part of the budget that is up on capital hill lobbying congress to pass laws and spend money to make the ADLS non profit organization millions more. As a conservative, politically speaking, I am opposed to this desire for everyone to turn to the government for solutions and ultimately that is what many non-profit organizations want. They want part of the hand out.

The second objection I have is spiritual.

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Matthew 6:21 ESV

Many many people make themselves and this world their treasure. My body is not my treasure. Whatever success I have in this world is not my treasure. My hope and my treasure is eternal. While I take care of the body that God has given to me, I know that this body is under a curse and it is going to fail. If not ALS then something else will kill me. I AM NOT SAYING THAT WE SHOULD FORGET ABOUT SOLVING THE PHYSICAL PROBLEMS LIKE ALS. I PRAY THAT SCIENCE CAN FIND A CURE IN A WAY THAT HONORS GOD. I ALSO PRAY FOR THOSE WHO ARE AFFLICTED IT IS A HORRIBLE PART OF THE CURSE AND I PRAY FOR THEIR RECOVERY. Sorry for the yelling, but I did not want anyone to be so binary in their thinking that they assume I do not want a cure or I do not care about the suffering caused by this curse. What I am saying is that we must keep a perspective that is honorable to God first. For all the energy spent solving temporary physical aliments how much energy have we spent on the eternal soul crushing spiritual aliments of sin? Jesus must be first and foremost in everything we do. Hell is real and people will go there for eternity, that is forever with no possible cure. Would so many of us be willing to take an evangelism challenge?

I am not talking in theory here either. I quit a job that consumed all my time so I would have more time to spend on spiritual things. I am pouring my life into my family, and God’s church. This is the passion that drives me and it is eternal. God saving women, men, and children through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus means more to me than anything else, because it is eternal and lasts forever.

I know many do not like the answer and maybe you think it a convenient “religious” answer, but I do not believe you can be too heavenly minded. Anyone that wants to be part of the current trend please do so and feel good about what you have done. I do not begrudge or judge it in any ill way. Just know that I choose not to participate and normally I keep this to myself because I know it makes people upset. For me being focused on eternity makes me feel like an unyielding rock in a rushing river. It is hard and it is uncomfortable and it is a reminder that this river is not my home.