You know that its going to be an interesting day when God hits you between the eyes on one of your shortcomings. One of the things that I know is that when God wants my attention, His Word leaps off the page at me. Today was such a case...
I have struggled greatly with the election of President Obama. I have written here and have spoken elsewhere of my convictions towards this end. I still believe that he is unfit and unqualified to lead our nation.
However, today's scripture in my personal devotions steered me to 1 Peter 2:13-17. In particular, verse 13 and 17 jumped at me. These verses are not opaque, and I quote: "submit yourselves for the Lord's sake to every authority instituted among men...show proper respect to everyone. Honor the king."
Ouch! For whatever eternal purposes, God has ordained Barack Obama as our nation's president and top ruling authority for now. The recipients of Peter's letter had similiar yet more severe struggles in the first century with their ruling authorities. It was common place for Christians then to be brutally executed, denied economic benefits and in general, marginalized from the society at large.
Peter's point here hits the nail on the head. Subjecting myself and respecting the ruling authority of President Obama is not just an exercise in futile servitude or blind obedience. We do it for the Lord's sake (verse 13). God wants me to respect the governing authorities he has placed in power. Its a matter of obedience and witness.
We live in a time where its sheik to diss our political leaders. The blogs, the internet and the cable news networks pump this poision 24/7. But, Scripture tells us to take a different tact. Respect and honor the king just as we would respect and honor the King of Heaven. We don't need to agree with Obama's policies but we need to avoid disrespect and dishonorable acts.
Your thoughts?
Thursday, April 02, 2009
Wednesday, April 01, 2009
Passing Out Condoms in Church? Give Me A Break...
What do you think about the latest idea in "church growth?" One denomination believes that condoms should be available to churchgoers in the United Church of Christ denomination.
Here's the link.
Recently, the HIV and AIDS Network of the United Church of Christ (UCC) said condoms should be handed out at places of worship. The statement was issued during a presentation to the denomination's Wider Church Ministries Board and also advocated making condoms available at faith-based educational settings...What they forget is that condom distribution is akin to fuel on a fire. By giving folks condoms you give them society's tacit permission to engage in illicit sexual relationships.
Calling it the denomination's "moral responsibility" to make condoms available, the UCC's executive for health and wellness advocacy said "people of faith make condoms available because we have chosen life so that we and our children may live...Another little ugly fact is that condoms often fail in preventing sexually transmitted diseases.
I guess I just live in a different universe. Besides the obvious "bad message" that will be sent to the youth of these churches, its the low regard these churches have for the capacity of folks to chose abstinence or marriage.
The sad fact remains that the United Church of Christ has completely broken away now its historic Puritan roots. The forefathers of this historic denomination must be rolling over in their graves.
Here's the link.
Recently, the HIV and AIDS Network of the United Church of Christ (UCC) said condoms should be handed out at places of worship. The statement was issued during a presentation to the denomination's Wider Church Ministries Board and also advocated making condoms available at faith-based educational settings...What they forget is that condom distribution is akin to fuel on a fire. By giving folks condoms you give them society's tacit permission to engage in illicit sexual relationships.
Calling it the denomination's "moral responsibility" to make condoms available, the UCC's executive for health and wellness advocacy said "people of faith make condoms available because we have chosen life so that we and our children may live...Another little ugly fact is that condoms often fail in preventing sexually transmitted diseases.
I guess I just live in a different universe. Besides the obvious "bad message" that will be sent to the youth of these churches, its the low regard these churches have for the capacity of folks to chose abstinence or marriage.
The sad fact remains that the United Church of Christ has completely broken away now its historic Puritan roots. The forefathers of this historic denomination must be rolling over in their graves.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Obama's Cap and Trade Scheme: More Taxes for Your Family
You need to know about the latest Obama plan to raise your taxes. This is another bad idea.
Here's the link.
The bottomline: this will raise your family costs and taxes. The climate change science behind it is dubious at best.
Just remember that Denver got 14-16 inches of snow!
Here's the link.
The bottomline: this will raise your family costs and taxes. The climate change science behind it is dubious at best.
Just remember that Denver got 14-16 inches of snow!
Friday, March 27, 2009
Kids May Get New "Rights" From United Nations
This has not been a good month.It seems that everywhere you look, anti-family, anti-life forces are on the march.
The latest is the resurrection of a new international treaty from the United Nations. This treaty would enshrine children's rights internationally. This is a Clinton-era relic which had been moth-balled since the late 1990's. Here's a good link for more information.
For some Utopians it sounds like shangri-la, but it's flaws are numerous:
-Creates a government agency to supervise parents and to ensure that children are given the opportunity to have binding arbitration to resolve disputes. You have to love this one. For example, your minor daughter wants to have sex and you say no. Hypothetically, she could sue you and be given that freedom. Access to abortion, religious freedom and any other issue could be arbitrated. Essentially, children would be owned by the state and indoctrinated in state ideology. Parents would become temporary custodians of their children.
-Imposes upon "national governments to ensure children's rights and that they have agreed to hold themselves accountable for this commitment before the international community." Yikes. What kind of international "supervision" will that entail? Ever heard of "Big Brother?"
This radical treaty pushes child autonomy. Its bad news for our nation, for parents and children.
The latest is the resurrection of a new international treaty from the United Nations. This treaty would enshrine children's rights internationally. This is a Clinton-era relic which had been moth-balled since the late 1990's. Here's a good link for more information.
For some Utopians it sounds like shangri-la, but it's flaws are numerous:
-Creates a government agency to supervise parents and to ensure that children are given the opportunity to have binding arbitration to resolve disputes. You have to love this one. For example, your minor daughter wants to have sex and you say no. Hypothetically, she could sue you and be given that freedom. Access to abortion, religious freedom and any other issue could be arbitrated. Essentially, children would be owned by the state and indoctrinated in state ideology. Parents would become temporary custodians of their children.
-Imposes upon "national governments to ensure children's rights and that they have agreed to hold themselves accountable for this commitment before the international community." Yikes. What kind of international "supervision" will that entail? Ever heard of "Big Brother?"
This radical treaty pushes child autonomy. Its bad news for our nation, for parents and children.
Why Colorado Senate Bill 88 Is A Bad Idea
Health care is not a civil right. The "list" of civil rights are based on immutability, in essence those personal characteristics which cannot be changed: eye-color, gender, height and ethnicity. Martin Luther King advocated that civil rights embraced concepts such as liberty, freedom of expression, freedom of worship, freedom of speech, economic prosperity for all. Our nation's founders would agree.
The latest Colorado advent of "civil rights" for homosexuals is encapsulated in Senate Bill 88 which is working its way to Governor Ritter's desk. Here's its synopsis:
For state employee group benefit plans issued or renewed on or
after July 1, 2010, adds a state employee's domestic partner to the list of
dependents eligible for coverage under state employee group benefit
plans. Defines "domestic partner" for purposes of qualifying as the
dependent of a state employee.
Here are several problems:
-This new law will cost a lot of money for a small group of folks. Budget experts estimate that taxpayers will be charged nearly $120,000 in its first year of implementation in 2011. I don't want my tax dollars ensuring this high-risk community.
-In 2006, Colorado voters overwhelmingly defeated Referendum I. This referendum would have given homosexuals these same benefits. By legislative fiat, homosexuals and their Democratic legislative allies are trying to accomplish this despite the will of voters.
If passed, expect this same cabal to attempt to force this concept in the Colorado private business community in 2010.
The latest Colorado advent of "civil rights" for homosexuals is encapsulated in Senate Bill 88 which is working its way to Governor Ritter's desk. Here's its synopsis:
For state employee group benefit plans issued or renewed on or
after July 1, 2010, adds a state employee's domestic partner to the list of
dependents eligible for coverage under state employee group benefit
plans. Defines "domestic partner" for purposes of qualifying as the
dependent of a state employee.
Here are several problems:
-This new law will cost a lot of money for a small group of folks. Budget experts estimate that taxpayers will be charged nearly $120,000 in its first year of implementation in 2011. I don't want my tax dollars ensuring this high-risk community.
-In 2006, Colorado voters overwhelmingly defeated Referendum I. This referendum would have given homosexuals these same benefits. By legislative fiat, homosexuals and their Democratic legislative allies are trying to accomplish this despite the will of voters.
If passed, expect this same cabal to attempt to force this concept in the Colorado private business community in 2010.
Friday, March 20, 2009
2007 Brings Record Number of Babies
2007 was a fertile year for American women having babies.
Thursday's issue of the USA Today reported a baby boom!
In 2007, 4.3 million new babes were born to American women, reaching near historic levels. Opinions for this surge vary among pediatric experts. But one chilling aspect of this story is the huge increase of babies born to unwed mothers.
Childbearing by unwed mothers accounted for nearly 40 percent of total birth- about 1.7 million. Since 2002, birth rates have dramatically accelerated among unwed mothers, dispelling much of the taboos of having children out of wedlock.
The group having the most kids out of wedlock-young women aged 20-24.
These numbers are cause for great concern. One of the highest predictors of poverty are families headed by a single parent, more often than not by women. While many of these mom's may have the income stream to support their new child or a live-in boyfriend, there remains the glaring fact that many kids will slip into impoverished homes.
This story proves again the value of marriage. Children thrive in a married home with both of their biological parents. Married families have higher income, lower levels of mental health issues, more stabilit and less domestic violence.
Thursday's issue of the USA Today reported a baby boom!
In 2007, 4.3 million new babes were born to American women, reaching near historic levels. Opinions for this surge vary among pediatric experts. But one chilling aspect of this story is the huge increase of babies born to unwed mothers.
Childbearing by unwed mothers accounted for nearly 40 percent of total birth- about 1.7 million. Since 2002, birth rates have dramatically accelerated among unwed mothers, dispelling much of the taboos of having children out of wedlock.
The group having the most kids out of wedlock-young women aged 20-24.
These numbers are cause for great concern. One of the highest predictors of poverty are families headed by a single parent, more often than not by women. While many of these mom's may have the income stream to support their new child or a live-in boyfriend, there remains the glaring fact that many kids will slip into impoverished homes.
This story proves again the value of marriage. Children thrive in a married home with both of their biological parents. Married families have higher income, lower levels of mental health issues, more stabilit and less domestic violence.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Taxing Colorado Marriages
A bad piece of Colorado public policy is making its way through the 2009 state legislature.
Senate bill 68 would impose a $20 tax on new marriage licenses in Colorado, to fund domestic violence programs.
This is a bad idea on a couple of fronts. First, marriage is an antidote to domestic violence. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) notes that the vast majority of violent domestic incidents are among live-in boyfriends and girlfriends. When couples marry, they make an emotional and physical investment for the long-term, reducing the risk of domestic violence. This hedge is not present in cohabiting relationships. And, the DV (domestic violence) factor increase exponentially if children are included into the cohabitation mix. Imposing this type of tax sends a subtle and false message: if folks didn't marry domestic violence would end.
RMFC supports DV programs. But taxing the societal entity that bulwarks against this behavior is the wrong policy road to travel down. Engaged couples don't need additional tax burdens imposed by the state. Instead, we need to encourage more couples to take the right step by marrying.
Perhaps a tax break to marry would be a better idea.
Everyone wins in this equation.
Let the sponsor of this bill, State Senator John Morse know your views at 303-866-6363.
Second
Senate bill 68 would impose a $20 tax on new marriage licenses in Colorado, to fund domestic violence programs.
This is a bad idea on a couple of fronts. First, marriage is an antidote to domestic violence. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) notes that the vast majority of violent domestic incidents are among live-in boyfriends and girlfriends. When couples marry, they make an emotional and physical investment for the long-term, reducing the risk of domestic violence. This hedge is not present in cohabiting relationships. And, the DV (domestic violence) factor increase exponentially if children are included into the cohabitation mix. Imposing this type of tax sends a subtle and false message: if folks didn't marry domestic violence would end.
RMFC supports DV programs. But taxing the societal entity that bulwarks against this behavior is the wrong policy road to travel down. Engaged couples don't need additional tax burdens imposed by the state. Instead, we need to encourage more couples to take the right step by marrying.
Perhaps a tax break to marry would be a better idea.
Everyone wins in this equation.
Let the sponsor of this bill, State Senator John Morse know your views at 303-866-6363.
Second
Monday, March 09, 2009
Let's Stay With What Works-Obama Lifts Stem Cell Ban.
Mr. President, no more smoke and mirrors.
Let's be honest. Lifting the Bush-era prohibition on embryonic stem cell research has little to do with finding "cures" but more with paying off political allies like Planned Parenthood and other abortionist supporters.
No cures have ever been found with embryonic cells. However, real treatment progress is being made with though with adult stem cells.
While Obama's decision will not provide new lines of embryonic cells it will make available older preserved cells for research.
Our problem with this decision is that it gives the camel a chance to gets its nose under the tent. Once the door is opened to this type of unlimited federally funded research, "Pandora's box" will open wide.
Here is the full story.
Let's be honest. Lifting the Bush-era prohibition on embryonic stem cell research has little to do with finding "cures" but more with paying off political allies like Planned Parenthood and other abortionist supporters.
No cures have ever been found with embryonic cells. However, real treatment progress is being made with though with adult stem cells.
While Obama's decision will not provide new lines of embryonic cells it will make available older preserved cells for research.
Our problem with this decision is that it gives the camel a chance to gets its nose under the tent. Once the door is opened to this type of unlimited federally funded research, "Pandora's box" will open wide.
Here is the full story.
Monday, March 02, 2009
Protect Your Right to Homeschool
We knew that this day would come somewhere. The public school bureaucracy hates homeschooling. The advent of the Obama administration will embolden these bureaucrat's to launch legal and legislative initiatives to gut homeschooling under a variety of guises.
Here's the first salvo in New Hampshire.
Here's the first salvo in New Hampshire.
Denver's Archbishop Chaput in the National Crosshairs
I think the Archbishop's comments are right on. See what you think...
Chaput calls Catholics servile toward Obama
By Electa Draper
The Denver Post
Posted: 02/26/2009 12:16:17 PM MST
Updated: 02/26/2009 03:56:32 PM MST
Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput (Post file)
Denver Catholic Archbishop Charles Chaput, on a book tour in Canada this week, stirred controversy with remarks about U.S. Catholics, who he says exhibit "a spirit of adulation bordering on servility" toward President Barack Obama, an abortion-rights advocate.
"In democracies, we elect public servants, not messiahs," Chaput told more than 700 people in St. Basil's Church on the University of Toronto campus, the Catholic News Agency reported.
Reaction lit up cyberspace, and it ranged from admiration for his defense of Catholic doctrine on sanctity of life to furious perceptions that Chaput is insulting Catholic Democrats and improperly meddling in politics.
Chaput's speech focused on his new book on faithful citizenship, "Render Unto Caesar."
He called Obama "a man of intelligence and some remarkable gifts" who has great ability to inspire.
"But whatever his strengths," Chaput said, "there's no way to reinvent his record on abortion and related issues with rosy marketing about unity, hope and change."
Chaput said that modern society has "a phony unwillingness to offend that poses as prudence and good manners but too often turns out to be cowardice."
Echoing remarks Chaput made before Obama's election in November, the archbishop said that Catholics must form a strong and genuinely Catholic conscience and follow that conscience when they vote. He has called opposition to abortion the litmus test for being Catholic.
"Tolerating grave evil within a society by itself is a form of serious evil," Chaput said.
Many Colorado Catholics reacted angrily during the election season to what they perceived as church attempts to coerce them into being one-issue voters.
Chaput said Americans focused on one issue, the economy.
"It's worth recalling that despite two ugly wars, an unpopular Republican president, a fractured Republican Party, the support of most of the American news media and massively outspending his opponent, our new president actually trailed in the election polls the week before the economic meltdown," Chaput said.
"Americans, including many Catholics, elected a gifted man to fix an economic crisis. That's the mandate," Chaput said. "They gave nobody a mandate to retool American culture on the issues of marriage and the family, sexuality, bioethics, religion in public life and abortion."
Chaput calls Catholics servile toward Obama
By Electa Draper
The Denver Post
Posted: 02/26/2009 12:16:17 PM MST
Updated: 02/26/2009 03:56:32 PM MST
Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput (Post file)
Denver Catholic Archbishop Charles Chaput, on a book tour in Canada this week, stirred controversy with remarks about U.S. Catholics, who he says exhibit "a spirit of adulation bordering on servility" toward President Barack Obama, an abortion-rights advocate.
"In democracies, we elect public servants, not messiahs," Chaput told more than 700 people in St. Basil's Church on the University of Toronto campus, the Catholic News Agency reported.
Reaction lit up cyberspace, and it ranged from admiration for his defense of Catholic doctrine on sanctity of life to furious perceptions that Chaput is insulting Catholic Democrats and improperly meddling in politics.
Chaput's speech focused on his new book on faithful citizenship, "Render Unto Caesar."
He called Obama "a man of intelligence and some remarkable gifts" who has great ability to inspire.
"But whatever his strengths," Chaput said, "there's no way to reinvent his record on abortion and related issues with rosy marketing about unity, hope and change."
Chaput said that modern society has "a phony unwillingness to offend that poses as prudence and good manners but too often turns out to be cowardice."
Echoing remarks Chaput made before Obama's election in November, the archbishop said that Catholics must form a strong and genuinely Catholic conscience and follow that conscience when they vote. He has called opposition to abortion the litmus test for being Catholic.
"Tolerating grave evil within a society by itself is a form of serious evil," Chaput said.
Many Colorado Catholics reacted angrily during the election season to what they perceived as church attempts to coerce them into being one-issue voters.
Chaput said Americans focused on one issue, the economy.
"It's worth recalling that despite two ugly wars, an unpopular Republican president, a fractured Republican Party, the support of most of the American news media and massively outspending his opponent, our new president actually trailed in the election polls the week before the economic meltdown," Chaput said.
"Americans, including many Catholics, elected a gifted man to fix an economic crisis. That's the mandate," Chaput said. "They gave nobody a mandate to retool American culture on the issues of marriage and the family, sexuality, bioethics, religion in public life and abortion."
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Colorado's Marriage "Lite"
Colorado has a determined and well-financed homosexual community.
Led by gizillionaire software designer Tim Gill and State Senator Jennifer Veiga, Colorado homosexuals continue to chip away the the public will. Three years ago, Colorado voters tweeked the ears of homosexual zealots by passing Amendment 23, which defined marriage as an exclusive relationship between a man and a woman. The "two-fer" was completed with the simultaneous voter rejection of Proposition I, the civil union flat tire.
Well, they're back and they haven't read the public memo of three years ago
Led by State Senator Jennifer Veiga, State Senate bill 88 would require the state to pay insurance for the partners of unmarried adult couples. Here is the story of the latest saga.
Am I the only one who sees this as obtuse? Why would the the state pay these bills? Is it truly a matter of fairness or simply another scam to dupe Coloradans? I'll vote for the later. Colorado voters made it clear that this type of monkey business is not a state priority. With tight budgets and a lack of funds, there is no way this bill should see the light of day.
A Trojan horse? You bet. Its Colorado marriage "lite."
Led by gizillionaire software designer Tim Gill and State Senator Jennifer Veiga, Colorado homosexuals continue to chip away the the public will. Three years ago, Colorado voters tweeked the ears of homosexual zealots by passing Amendment 23, which defined marriage as an exclusive relationship between a man and a woman. The "two-fer" was completed with the simultaneous voter rejection of Proposition I, the civil union flat tire.
Well, they're back and they haven't read the public memo of three years ago
Led by State Senator Jennifer Veiga, State Senate bill 88 would require the state to pay insurance for the partners of unmarried adult couples. Here is the story of the latest saga.
Am I the only one who sees this as obtuse? Why would the the state pay these bills? Is it truly a matter of fairness or simply another scam to dupe Coloradans? I'll vote for the later. Colorado voters made it clear that this type of monkey business is not a state priority. With tight budgets and a lack of funds, there is no way this bill should see the light of day.
A Trojan horse? You bet. Its Colorado marriage "lite."
Monday, February 23, 2009
Homosexual Rights Bill Gains Steam in Colorado Legislature
A bill working its way through the Colorado State Legislature which would grant homosexuals additional legal benefits is gaining steam.
Three years ago, Coloradans soundly defeated a state ballot measure that would have dispensed these benefits to unmarried couples, such as: inheriting property, hospital visitation, funeral arrangements, etc.
This bill is a trojan horse designed to circumvent the will of Colorado voters and give civil union rights to homosexual couples.
Here is the story...
Three years ago, Coloradans soundly defeated a state ballot measure that would have dispensed these benefits to unmarried couples, such as: inheriting property, hospital visitation, funeral arrangements, etc.
This bill is a trojan horse designed to circumvent the will of Colorado voters and give civil union rights to homosexual couples.
Here is the story...
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Pope Benedict XVI Lowers the Abortion Boom...
Pope Benedict minces no words with this statement.
From Washington DC to our Colorado state capital, Catholic politicians who take their faith seriously, are uncomfortable today.
For many of these politicians, their faith stops at the doorstep of their politics. This inconsistency of faith and their actions in the public square has directly contributed by association to the deaths of nearly 40 million and counting unborn Americans.
Someday, this bill will come due.
From Washington DC to our Colorado state capital, Catholic politicians who take their faith seriously, are uncomfortable today.
For many of these politicians, their faith stops at the doorstep of their politics. This inconsistency of faith and their actions in the public square has directly contributed by association to the deaths of nearly 40 million and counting unborn Americans.
Someday, this bill will come due.
Friday, February 13, 2009
Be Safe But Let's Be Realistic Too
Most Coloradans remember the night-marish events here in our state involving teenagers and guns. Without a doubt, our state has had its share of tragedies: the Columbine massacre; the Platte River High School Shootings; and the tragic shootings at YWAM and at New Life Church in Colorado Springs.
Understandably, new laws were passed to hoepfully prevent these tragedies from occuring again.
Earlier this week comes a splash of reality. Marie Morrow, a 17 year old senior was bounced from her high school for having a facsimile gun in her car that she used for drill practice with the Douglas County Young Marines drill team. Here's the story.
Apparently, someone spied the gun in her car and informed school authorities. Under current state law prohibiting any gun possession on public school grounds, Miss Morrow was expelled.
This story underscores the rigidity of current law. Understandably, no one wants a repeat of more school gun tragedies.
The higher ground of reason here demands a modification of this current law, allowing school authorities to make a more accurate decision once all of the information is gathered by officials.
Guns are not evil in of themselves. Its the criminals who used them for evil purposese. Marie Morrow is no criminal but simply a young lady who works hard and who happens to command a group of exemplary teenagers who drill with facsimile guns.
Let's change this law and not punish the innocent.
Understandably, new laws were passed to hoepfully prevent these tragedies from occuring again.
Earlier this week comes a splash of reality. Marie Morrow, a 17 year old senior was bounced from her high school for having a facsimile gun in her car that she used for drill practice with the Douglas County Young Marines drill team. Here's the story.
Apparently, someone spied the gun in her car and informed school authorities. Under current state law prohibiting any gun possession on public school grounds, Miss Morrow was expelled.
This story underscores the rigidity of current law. Understandably, no one wants a repeat of more school gun tragedies.
The higher ground of reason here demands a modification of this current law, allowing school authorities to make a more accurate decision once all of the information is gathered by officials.
Guns are not evil in of themselves. Its the criminals who used them for evil purposese. Marie Morrow is no criminal but simply a young lady who works hard and who happens to command a group of exemplary teenagers who drill with facsimile guns.
Let's change this law and not punish the innocent.
Wednesday, February 04, 2009
Your Tax Dollars Funding Abortion Overseas
"Change that we can believe in?" I think not. Barack Obama has already stained his administration by refunding overseas abortion services. In comparison to many nations, America has some of the most liberal abortion laws. The President's actions have given us a notorious new export: abortions.
The U.S. may be divided on the subject of abortion but not on funding it. Despite President Obama's incredible popularity, the honeymoon is already over on social issues. Gallup has found widespread opposition to the President's decision to repeal the Mexico City policy. Only 35 percent of those surveyed said they agreed with the decision to allow taxpayer funding for overseas groups who promote abortion.
Americans aren't the only ones disturbed by the shift. Countries across Latin America have lashed out at the new White House for contaminating their laws with anti-life policies. Congresswoman Martha Lorena de Casco of Honduras said she felt "sorrow" that one of the President's first acts was to threaten her country's pro-life law. Representatives from Argentina, El Salvador, and other countries echoed de Casco encouraging Americans to follow their example and respect the right to life in national law. As I've said before, President Obama's election was the result of an economic mandate, not a social one. The further he deviates from that mandate, the more likely he is to lose it.
The U.S. may be divided on the subject of abortion but not on funding it. Despite President Obama's incredible popularity, the honeymoon is already over on social issues. Gallup has found widespread opposition to the President's decision to repeal the Mexico City policy. Only 35 percent of those surveyed said they agreed with the decision to allow taxpayer funding for overseas groups who promote abortion.
Americans aren't the only ones disturbed by the shift. Countries across Latin America have lashed out at the new White House for contaminating their laws with anti-life policies. Congresswoman Martha Lorena de Casco of Honduras said she felt "sorrow" that one of the President's first acts was to threaten her country's pro-life law. Representatives from Argentina, El Salvador, and other countries echoed de Casco encouraging Americans to follow their example and respect the right to life in national law. As I've said before, President Obama's election was the result of an economic mandate, not a social one. The further he deviates from that mandate, the more likely he is to lose it.
Monday, February 02, 2009
Abstinence Is Best
There is a tragic story in today's Rocky Mountain News (dtd 2-2-2009). It chronicles the tragedy of a 16 year old teen named Ashley Ryburn.
Ashley is desperately ill. She is losing her hair, she passes out when her blood pressure plummets and she is nauseous. She had not turned ill until she received her first injections of Gardasil, a medication designed to prevent cervical cancer. While there is no definite connection yet between Ashley's mysterious ailments and these shots, one has to suspect a smoking gun.
According to Joni Reynolds, immunization director for Colorado's Department of Public Health and the Environment, our state has not had reports of any serious reactions to the vaccine. Still, Ashley is sick, possibly of a shot reaction.
We live in a culture where a populist attitude exists-we hope to tempt fate and conquer consequences of unnatural practices with a shot or a pill. Unfortunately, the natural laws of this world are not often trumped.
God designed sex as a monogamous act between a husband and wife. Its practice outside of these boundaries leads to disease, unwanted pregnancies and heartache.
The bottom line today is that if you have sex with someone other than your spouse, you risk infection by a host of of nasty sexually transmitted bugs.
We will pray that God will heal Ashley. Her tragedy is a clarion call for parents to help their kids practice abstinence instead of a shot as the best way to stay healthy.
Ashley is desperately ill. She is losing her hair, she passes out when her blood pressure plummets and she is nauseous. She had not turned ill until she received her first injections of Gardasil, a medication designed to prevent cervical cancer. While there is no definite connection yet between Ashley's mysterious ailments and these shots, one has to suspect a smoking gun.
According to Joni Reynolds, immunization director for Colorado's Department of Public Health and the Environment, our state has not had reports of any serious reactions to the vaccine. Still, Ashley is sick, possibly of a shot reaction.
We live in a culture where a populist attitude exists-we hope to tempt fate and conquer consequences of unnatural practices with a shot or a pill. Unfortunately, the natural laws of this world are not often trumped.
God designed sex as a monogamous act between a husband and wife. Its practice outside of these boundaries leads to disease, unwanted pregnancies and heartache.
The bottom line today is that if you have sex with someone other than your spouse, you risk infection by a host of of nasty sexually transmitted bugs.
We will pray that God will heal Ashley. Her tragedy is a clarion call for parents to help their kids practice abstinence instead of a shot as the best way to stay healthy.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Feeding the Pig-Why this Stimulus Bill Hurts Families
The "pig" is oinking! The porker that I am referring to is our government and its increasing demand for your money.
Everyone knows that our economy is in tough shape right now but the current "stimulus" plan by President Obama is a porker!
Rep. Mike Pence, one of the brightest and smartest conservatives in Congress, hit the nail on the head yesterday: "Democrats have offered a purely partisan bill that does not incorporate bipartisan recommendations. The American people know that the president's call for a compromise has been completely ignored by House Democrats who would use a time of national economic crisis to fund their big government priorities under the guise of stimulating the economy."
Obama has a fire on his flank in Congress. While the President talks a good game of cooperation, his buddies in Congress are on the warpath.
Conservative, pro-life, pro-family Americans (which is the majority) must be cautious right now. Don't be fooled and buy into feeding the pig!
Everyone knows that our economy is in tough shape right now but the current "stimulus" plan by President Obama is a porker!
Rep. Mike Pence, one of the brightest and smartest conservatives in Congress, hit the nail on the head yesterday: "Democrats have offered a purely partisan bill that does not incorporate bipartisan recommendations. The American people know that the president's call for a compromise has been completely ignored by House Democrats who would use a time of national economic crisis to fund their big government priorities under the guise of stimulating the economy."
Obama has a fire on his flank in Congress. While the President talks a good game of cooperation, his buddies in Congress are on the warpath.
Conservative, pro-life, pro-family Americans (which is the majority) must be cautious right now. Don't be fooled and buy into feeding the pig!
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Obama's First Day of "Hope and Change"
If day one is any indication, we are in for a long four years of Barack Obama.
On Monday of this week, the White House web site, whitehouse.gov spoke of President Bush's priorities of the right to life, lower taxes and the sanctity of marriage.
By Wednesday, the site had changed. Now, whitehouse.gov proudly announces Barack Obama's "change we can all believe in"- abortion on demand, civil union rights and privileges equal to those who marry, and higher taxes on families and businesses.
Elections have consequences.
Check it out here.
I can't wait to see what the following days will bring.
Bring on more hope and change!
On Monday of this week, the White House web site, whitehouse.gov spoke of President Bush's priorities of the right to life, lower taxes and the sanctity of marriage.
By Wednesday, the site had changed. Now, whitehouse.gov proudly announces Barack Obama's "change we can all believe in"- abortion on demand, civil union rights and privileges equal to those who marry, and higher taxes on families and businesses.
Elections have consequences.
Check it out here.
I can't wait to see what the following days will bring.
Bring on more hope and change!
Graciousness vs. Lack of Class-Prayers of Rick Warren and Jospeh Lowery
Pastor Rick Warren and Pastor Joseph Lowery offered very different prayers at the Obama inauguration earlier this week.
Their prayers could not have been different.
Castigated by the liberal media as a bigot and homophobe, Pastor Rick Warren of Saddleback Church in California offered a gracious God-centered prayer, invoking blessings upon Obama and his new administration. See the entire prayer here.
On the other hand, the Reverend Joseph Lowery, champion of Civil Rights fame, hit a foul ball. At the end of his prayer, Lowery could not resist playing the race card with a little poem- "we ask you to help us work for the day when black will not be asked to get in the back, when brown can stick around, when yellow becomes mellow, when the red man can get ahead man, and when white will embrace what is right."
Awful and without class. Read the entire prayer here.
The first mixed race American has become the 44th president of the United States. Our prayers for him should be ones of unity not separation into race classes.
Their prayers could not have been different.
Castigated by the liberal media as a bigot and homophobe, Pastor Rick Warren of Saddleback Church in California offered a gracious God-centered prayer, invoking blessings upon Obama and his new administration. See the entire prayer here.
On the other hand, the Reverend Joseph Lowery, champion of Civil Rights fame, hit a foul ball. At the end of his prayer, Lowery could not resist playing the race card with a little poem- "we ask you to help us work for the day when black will not be asked to get in the back, when brown can stick around, when yellow becomes mellow, when the red man can get ahead man, and when white will embrace what is right."
Awful and without class. Read the entire prayer here.
The first mixed race American has become the 44th president of the United States. Our prayers for him should be ones of unity not separation into race classes.
Monday, January 19, 2009
Barack Obama- Believer in Homosexual Marriage
Barack Obama is threading the eye of the needle right now.
On the one hand, he has invited Rick Warren to give his inaugural invocation, and yet he dances with Gene Robinson, the divisive homosexual Episcopalian bishop from New Hampshire.
Eventually, he will have to land on one side of the fence or the other....
Here's the inside scoop.
On the one hand, he has invited Rick Warren to give his inaugural invocation, and yet he dances with Gene Robinson, the divisive homosexual Episcopalian bishop from New Hampshire.
Eventually, he will have to land on one side of the fence or the other....
Here's the inside scoop.
True Hope. True Change
Time will tell if Obama can truly change America. I am betting that he won't nor does he. America's greatness has never been defined by what the government thinks or does. Our nation has found it strength in the fiber and souls of Americans, who under God's provision, carved out a new nation. That is still happening today.
Colossians 1:27 states that our hope is "Christ in you, the hope of glory." Psalm 62:5 adds that "find rest my soul in God alone; my hope comes from him."
America is being seduced. Hope and change come from the hand of God and not the pen of Barack Obama. To think else wise, endangers us.
Christian Americans need to be in prayer for our countrymen and the soul of America. We need to pray that our new leaders will be leaders who grip the hand of God.
Colossians 1:27 states that our hope is "Christ in you, the hope of glory." Psalm 62:5 adds that "find rest my soul in God alone; my hope comes from him."
America is being seduced. Hope and change come from the hand of God and not the pen of Barack Obama. To think else wise, endangers us.
Christian Americans need to be in prayer for our countrymen and the soul of America. We need to pray that our new leaders will be leaders who grip the hand of God.
Ready, Set It's Obama Time: Here's What We Will Get...
The mainstream media is getting set to coronate the messiah. The froth and lather is getting pretty deep already. To listen to some media talking heads, one would think that our savior has arrived.
Now, I am all for our nation flourishing under Barack Obama's wise leadership. The reality is is that Obama will be our president for the next 4 years. But, he is not our national savior.
Once the confetti and champagne stops flowing, the "Obama reality" will set in.
Here are my predictions for Obama. Again, I want America to flourish. But not in an ungodly way.
+Higher taxes. No matter how you slice it, Obama will have to raise taxes on someone to fulfill his promises. The likely targets: those evil "rich" Americans, who by the way create most of our jobs.
+Liberal activist judges. Our judicial system already is filled with jurists who believe that they are lawmakers. These appointments will be Obama's payoff to his liberal supporters. Look for judges who are anti-marriage, anti-gun, anti-American sovereignty and pro-government.
+More abortions. The abortion industry is salivating over Obama's election. Lingering just off the legislative main stage is a bill in Congress to eliminate state laws restricting abortions. Despite the rhetoric, more unborn babies will die during Obama's term.
+Active homosexuals in the military. One of Obama's first acts will be to issue an executive order lifting the current "don't ask, don't tell" ban on homosexuals in the military. The current ban is a Clinton-era relic which allowed gays to serve as long as they were private in their lifestyle. The new policy: homosexuals will be able to openly serve in our military. Obama will get a lot points from the troops for this one.
+More government spending and regulations. Look out "big oil." Large American companies may be taxed out of business once the enviro anti-capitalist crowd gets their hands on power. In will come all sorts of new government programs which will create dependency and a lackluster economy.
+Grave threats from overseas. Hillary Clinton's appointment to Secretary of State gives me chills. Watch to see if Bill is traveling with her on our overseas jaunts. This is the same crowd whose foreign policies set the table for 9/11; who gave away sensitive national secrets to the Chinese for campaign donations, etc., etc., etc. Someone will test Obama in the first 6 months to see if he blinks. I'm betting that he does.
+Finally, lot's of flowery rhetoric. This is Obama's greatest skill and it masks his lack of experience. The meida can't wait to have this slick, silver-tongued, "GQ" president. They cannot get rid of old Bush fast enought. Take away the tele-prompter and the suit may be empty.
America will succeed with presidential convictions and substance. My hope is that Obama will find them.
Now, I am all for our nation flourishing under Barack Obama's wise leadership. The reality is is that Obama will be our president for the next 4 years. But, he is not our national savior.
Once the confetti and champagne stops flowing, the "Obama reality" will set in.
Here are my predictions for Obama. Again, I want America to flourish. But not in an ungodly way.
+Higher taxes. No matter how you slice it, Obama will have to raise taxes on someone to fulfill his promises. The likely targets: those evil "rich" Americans, who by the way create most of our jobs.
+Liberal activist judges. Our judicial system already is filled with jurists who believe that they are lawmakers. These appointments will be Obama's payoff to his liberal supporters. Look for judges who are anti-marriage, anti-gun, anti-American sovereignty and pro-government.
+More abortions. The abortion industry is salivating over Obama's election. Lingering just off the legislative main stage is a bill in Congress to eliminate state laws restricting abortions. Despite the rhetoric, more unborn babies will die during Obama's term.
+Active homosexuals in the military. One of Obama's first acts will be to issue an executive order lifting the current "don't ask, don't tell" ban on homosexuals in the military. The current ban is a Clinton-era relic which allowed gays to serve as long as they were private in their lifestyle. The new policy: homosexuals will be able to openly serve in our military. Obama will get a lot points from the troops for this one.
+More government spending and regulations. Look out "big oil." Large American companies may be taxed out of business once the enviro anti-capitalist crowd gets their hands on power. In will come all sorts of new government programs which will create dependency and a lackluster economy.
+Grave threats from overseas. Hillary Clinton's appointment to Secretary of State gives me chills. Watch to see if Bill is traveling with her on our overseas jaunts. This is the same crowd whose foreign policies set the table for 9/11; who gave away sensitive national secrets to the Chinese for campaign donations, etc., etc., etc. Someone will test Obama in the first 6 months to see if he blinks. I'm betting that he does.
+Finally, lot's of flowery rhetoric. This is Obama's greatest skill and it masks his lack of experience. The meida can't wait to have this slick, silver-tongued, "GQ" president. They cannot get rid of old Bush fast enought. Take away the tele-prompter and the suit may be empty.
America will succeed with presidential convictions and substance. My hope is that Obama will find them.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
The Homeschooling Revolution Goes Boom!
Way to go homeschoolers!
A new report from the Department of Education's National Center for Statistics says that homeschooling is growing so quickly that it can hardly be called an exception to the educational rule. Since 1999, the number of students taught at home has increased by a whopping 75 percent! As the population of homeschoolers swells, so too do the positive results. According to the National Home Education Research Institute (NHERI), homeschoolers continue to earn higher marks than their public school peers. Dr. Brian Ray of NHERI found that on average, children who learn at home score at least 15 percent higher-and in some instances 30 percent higher-than the K-12 public school average. But academic achievement isn't the only reason families favor homeschooling. The most popular motive for educating children at home, according to the DOE's survey, was concern for the negative influence of public school. Eighty-three percent of parents also cited "a desire to provide religious or moral instruction."
As a homeschooling parent myself, I understand the desire to give children an environment that affirms traditional values. The government has eliminated God from the classroom and too often replaced Him with an anti-life, anti-family curriculum that misses life's deepest meaning. Also, more and more parents are finding that homeschooling better suits the educational needs of their children. It's low-cost, time-efficient, flexible, and conducive to creativity.
Here's the link to the entire story.
A new report from the Department of Education's National Center for Statistics says that homeschooling is growing so quickly that it can hardly be called an exception to the educational rule. Since 1999, the number of students taught at home has increased by a whopping 75 percent! As the population of homeschoolers swells, so too do the positive results. According to the National Home Education Research Institute (NHERI), homeschoolers continue to earn higher marks than their public school peers. Dr. Brian Ray of NHERI found that on average, children who learn at home score at least 15 percent higher-and in some instances 30 percent higher-than the K-12 public school average. But academic achievement isn't the only reason families favor homeschooling. The most popular motive for educating children at home, according to the DOE's survey, was concern for the negative influence of public school. Eighty-three percent of parents also cited "a desire to provide religious or moral instruction."
As a homeschooling parent myself, I understand the desire to give children an environment that affirms traditional values. The government has eliminated God from the classroom and too often replaced Him with an anti-life, anti-family curriculum that misses life's deepest meaning. Also, more and more parents are finding that homeschooling better suits the educational needs of their children. It's low-cost, time-efficient, flexible, and conducive to creativity.
Here's the link to the entire story.
Thursday, January 08, 2009
History Will Vindicate George Bush
HISTORY WILL VINDICATE PRESIDENT BUSH
By a coincidence of history, Americans will pause to honor our most revered president just a matter of days after one of our most reviled president’s leaves office. George W. Bush leaves the White House on Jan. 20. On Feb. 12, we’ll mark the bicentenary of Abraham Lincoln’s birth.
When removed from the presidency by assassination in 1865, Lincoln was extremely unpopular. Hated in the South for his war policies, he was also hated in the North for his openness towards reconciliation with the nearly defeated confederacy. Most Americans blamed him for the war and economic ruin America would face in its aftermath. His death to some of his critics was good riddance. He was a war-time president, ungainly in looks and speech. He was routinely mocked in the media of that time for his steadfastness and convictions. If today’s media and their presidential polls existed in the 19th century, Lincoln’s approval ratings would have mirrored George W. Bush numbers.
George Bush lacks sizzle and style points. If he was a college football coach, his team would never set foot in the BCS (bowl championship series) title game. Frankly, he is boring to most 21st century Americans. He sleeps with the same woman every night. He is not an eloquent extemporaneous communicator. He holds to a conservative faith. And he believes in the antiquated notion that America is still the best beacon of hope and freedom in the world. To our liberal friends, he is a failure. Liberals have made the slogan “Bush failed” into a cottage industry. Almost with unanimity, liberal Americans (and those who agree with this ideology) have used the “hate Bush” mantra as their marching order, denigrating the successes of this President and catapulting one of their own, Barack Obama into the White House. Their hatred of Bush’s policies has blinded them to what has truly been achieved.
But 50 years from now, when a new generation of historians measure the presidency of George W. Bush, a different summary may well be written. For those Americans who have forgotten the good things about Bush, here is a quick refresher: the American homeland has not been attacked again since 9/11. George Bush has kept our soil safe. You may disagree with how it’s been accomplished (Gitmo and water boarding or national surveillance) but, our terrorist enemies have been foiled to date. Second, this President’s policies have planted the seed of democracy in the heart of the Arab world. Whether Iraq or Afghanistan become Muslim democracies like Turkey remains to be seen. But, the prospect of legitimate freedom is inspiring to millions of Muslims. Finally, this president’s innovative faith-based initiatives have formed new partnerships throughout our nation, serving many needy Americans. While style and sizzle may permeate our celebrity culture, genuine substance and conviction still matters most when it comes to true lasting presidential leadership.
Today, nearly 150 years later, most Americans tout the conviction and leadership of Abraham Lincoln. What they may not know is that Lincoln was hotly despised and demised by most of his generation. Yet that criticism has melted away with time leaving a monument of admiration to his conviction of beliefs. History may well judge George Bush in a similar fashion.
By a coincidence of history, Americans will pause to honor our most revered president just a matter of days after one of our most reviled president’s leaves office. George W. Bush leaves the White House on Jan. 20. On Feb. 12, we’ll mark the bicentenary of Abraham Lincoln’s birth.
When removed from the presidency by assassination in 1865, Lincoln was extremely unpopular. Hated in the South for his war policies, he was also hated in the North for his openness towards reconciliation with the nearly defeated confederacy. Most Americans blamed him for the war and economic ruin America would face in its aftermath. His death to some of his critics was good riddance. He was a war-time president, ungainly in looks and speech. He was routinely mocked in the media of that time for his steadfastness and convictions. If today’s media and their presidential polls existed in the 19th century, Lincoln’s approval ratings would have mirrored George W. Bush numbers.
George Bush lacks sizzle and style points. If he was a college football coach, his team would never set foot in the BCS (bowl championship series) title game. Frankly, he is boring to most 21st century Americans. He sleeps with the same woman every night. He is not an eloquent extemporaneous communicator. He holds to a conservative faith. And he believes in the antiquated notion that America is still the best beacon of hope and freedom in the world. To our liberal friends, he is a failure. Liberals have made the slogan “Bush failed” into a cottage industry. Almost with unanimity, liberal Americans (and those who agree with this ideology) have used the “hate Bush” mantra as their marching order, denigrating the successes of this President and catapulting one of their own, Barack Obama into the White House. Their hatred of Bush’s policies has blinded them to what has truly been achieved.
But 50 years from now, when a new generation of historians measure the presidency of George W. Bush, a different summary may well be written. For those Americans who have forgotten the good things about Bush, here is a quick refresher: the American homeland has not been attacked again since 9/11. George Bush has kept our soil safe. You may disagree with how it’s been accomplished (Gitmo and water boarding or national surveillance) but, our terrorist enemies have been foiled to date. Second, this President’s policies have planted the seed of democracy in the heart of the Arab world. Whether Iraq or Afghanistan become Muslim democracies like Turkey remains to be seen. But, the prospect of legitimate freedom is inspiring to millions of Muslims. Finally, this president’s innovative faith-based initiatives have formed new partnerships throughout our nation, serving many needy Americans. While style and sizzle may permeate our celebrity culture, genuine substance and conviction still matters most when it comes to true lasting presidential leadership.
Today, nearly 150 years later, most Americans tout the conviction and leadership of Abraham Lincoln. What they may not know is that Lincoln was hotly despised and demised by most of his generation. Yet that criticism has melted away with time leaving a monument of admiration to his conviction of beliefs. History may well judge George Bush in a similar fashion.
Tuesday, January 06, 2009
Dealing with Power and Influence in 2009
In two weeks, a new President will take the oath of office. Regardless of your vote, our nation will confer high power and influence on to Barack Obama. Time will tell whether Mr. Obama will be able to wear these shoes or not. But, over time, many aspiring leaders have fallen upon the sword of power, washed away by its seductive promises.
The Old Testament records a great story of a powerful Jew who rose to become the cup bearer for a powerful Persian king...His name was Nehemiah...
In the Fifth century B.C., a royal cup-bearer to the Persian King Artaxerxes, arrived in the derelict and neglected city of Jerusalem. This powerful man had been tasked to rebuild the city’s shattered walls and to revive its civic virtues after 150 years of neglect and the Jewish exile. This man was a God-believing Jew named Nehemiah. He brought with him to Jerusalem a strong military escort, letters of authorization and a declaration of governorship from the most powerful man in the world. With it came the king’s authority to mobilize and command whatever resources he needed professionally or personally.
Yet, humbly he tacked a different course. In an age where the elite and privilege classes enjoyed unparalleled patronage, Nehemiah sought to simply follow God’s direction and restore God’s city. Over and over again, he refused his rightful privileges as governor and led by example the laborious task of rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, overturning unethical and unjust social practices and assuaging the spiritual thirst of his fellow Jews
Power is to the soul what rust is to metal- it will corrode without continual maintenance. Scripture tells us that the antidote to “power corruption” is humility, an abundant character trait of Nehemiah. Likely, Nehemiah was a humble man before he ascended to his powerful role in the Persian court. He would have been familiar with this famous proverb -“The fear of the Lord teaches a man wisdom, and humility comes before honor” (Prov. 15:33).
The practice of humility worked for Nehemiah and it still works today.
As a new year dawns, how will you handle temporary power and influence in your world? Do others know you as a humble person who is seeking the betterment of others or do they know you as a self-centered person absorbed in what's best for you?
The Old Testament records a great story of a powerful Jew who rose to become the cup bearer for a powerful Persian king...His name was Nehemiah...
In the Fifth century B.C., a royal cup-bearer to the Persian King Artaxerxes, arrived in the derelict and neglected city of Jerusalem. This powerful man had been tasked to rebuild the city’s shattered walls and to revive its civic virtues after 150 years of neglect and the Jewish exile. This man was a God-believing Jew named Nehemiah. He brought with him to Jerusalem a strong military escort, letters of authorization and a declaration of governorship from the most powerful man in the world. With it came the king’s authority to mobilize and command whatever resources he needed professionally or personally.
Yet, humbly he tacked a different course. In an age where the elite and privilege classes enjoyed unparalleled patronage, Nehemiah sought to simply follow God’s direction and restore God’s city. Over and over again, he refused his rightful privileges as governor and led by example the laborious task of rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, overturning unethical and unjust social practices and assuaging the spiritual thirst of his fellow Jews
Power is to the soul what rust is to metal- it will corrode without continual maintenance. Scripture tells us that the antidote to “power corruption” is humility, an abundant character trait of Nehemiah. Likely, Nehemiah was a humble man before he ascended to his powerful role in the Persian court. He would have been familiar with this famous proverb -“The fear of the Lord teaches a man wisdom, and humility comes before honor” (Prov. 15:33).
The practice of humility worked for Nehemiah and it still works today.
As a new year dawns, how will you handle temporary power and influence in your world? Do others know you as a humble person who is seeking the betterment of others or do they know you as a self-centered person absorbed in what's best for you?
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Monday, December 22, 2008
C'Mon Mr. President Get the Faith Piece Right
It was painful to watch and listen.
Last week, President Bush fumbled badly his interview on ABC's Nightline. When asked to explain his faith, he got torturous. In typical Bush-ese, the President wandered off track and into the swamp: "It gave me strength and—strength and understanding. There's love, universal love. My faith at this point in my life has enabled me to accept people's prayers and this made a huge difference in my life. There's a lot of dramatic moments and pressure. There are calm moments. How do you know? It's about prayer. For many people, it's a crutch, but for me it is—it's the realization of a power of a universal God, and recognition that this God became manifested in human. And then died for sins."
Later in the interview, the President articulated his doubts about the validity of the Bible and his belief in evolution as the transforming, biological agent of change in our world. Those comments alone cast doubt upon this President's thoughtfulness on faith.
Faith in Jesus Christ and an ensuing consistent worldview is hugely important today. Its not something that you sort of believe in or that you vaguely hold to because it gives you comfort. We live in a world in which so many people have become synchronistic, blending partial biblical beliefs with their own pop psychology to suit their own means. Flip on Oprah and the mental mush oozes out. Our nation is awash in spiritual relativism. Many Christians are unable to articulate their faith, much like the President. As a result their witness to a sinful world diminishes.
My hope and prayer as we move forward into 2009 is that President Bush's successor will bring a better handle on the importance of faith and the the ability to call Americans to it.
Last week, President Bush fumbled badly his interview on ABC's Nightline. When asked to explain his faith, he got torturous. In typical Bush-ese, the President wandered off track and into the swamp: "It gave me strength and—strength and understanding. There's love, universal love. My faith at this point in my life has enabled me to accept people's prayers and this made a huge difference in my life. There's a lot of dramatic moments and pressure. There are calm moments. How do you know? It's about prayer. For many people, it's a crutch, but for me it is—it's the realization of a power of a universal God, and recognition that this God became manifested in human. And then died for sins."
Later in the interview, the President articulated his doubts about the validity of the Bible and his belief in evolution as the transforming, biological agent of change in our world. Those comments alone cast doubt upon this President's thoughtfulness on faith.
Faith in Jesus Christ and an ensuing consistent worldview is hugely important today. Its not something that you sort of believe in or that you vaguely hold to because it gives you comfort. We live in a world in which so many people have become synchronistic, blending partial biblical beliefs with their own pop psychology to suit their own means. Flip on Oprah and the mental mush oozes out. Our nation is awash in spiritual relativism. Many Christians are unable to articulate their faith, much like the President. As a result their witness to a sinful world diminishes.
My hope and prayer as we move forward into 2009 is that President Bush's successor will bring a better handle on the importance of faith and the the ability to call Americans to it.
Humility Before God
Being humble is a good thing. Doing it on a consistent basis is another matter. Proverbs has much to say about our attitude of our mind and spirit. God blatantly dismisses human arrogance as offensive to Him. "The fear of the Lord teaches a man wisdom and humility comes before honor." Humility in God's economy is the antidote to human knowledge and self-sufficiency.
The greatest example of humility embodies the Christmas season. While many celebrate Christmas as the birth of God's son, the fact that he would be born into human flesh at all is simply mind boggling. In Philippians 2, Paul minces no words as he describes Christ's eternal position yet underscores his humanity.
Christmas is not only about the birth of Christ, but its about the nature of God. All of us deserved justice. Yet, because of Christ's sacrificial death, the wall of separation between us and God has vanished.
Humility anyone?
The greatest example of humility embodies the Christmas season. While many celebrate Christmas as the birth of God's son, the fact that he would be born into human flesh at all is simply mind boggling. In Philippians 2, Paul minces no words as he describes Christ's eternal position yet underscores his humanity.
Christmas is not only about the birth of Christ, but its about the nature of God. All of us deserved justice. Yet, because of Christ's sacrificial death, the wall of separation between us and God has vanished.
Humility anyone?
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Obama Pick of Rick Warren
Good move President-elect Obama in selecting Rick Warren to deliver your inauguration's invocation.
Mr. Obama, ignore the yapping homosexual activists.
Here's the story.
Mr. Obama, ignore the yapping homosexual activists.
Here's the story.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Funny Excerpts from Tests and Reports of American Students
You have to laugh a bit. After all, its almost Christmas and 2008 has been a serious year...
Here is our contribution to the merriment. These are actual excerpts from tests and reports from students in our country...
The climate of the Sarah is such that the inhabitants have to live elsewhere.Ancient Egypt was inhabited by mummies and they all wrote in hydraulics.
The Egyptians built the Pyramids in the shape of huge triangular cubes.They lived in the Sarah Dessert and traveled by Camelot.
The French Revolution was accomplished before it happened and catapulted into Napoleon. Napoleon wanted an heir to inherit his power, but since Josephine was a baroness, she couldn't have any children.
Actually, Homer was not written by Homer but by another man of that name.
The next great author was John Milton. Milton wrote Paradise Lost. Then his wife died and he wrote Paradise Regained.
Sir Francis Drake circumcised the world with a 100-foot clipper.Solomom had three hundred wives and seven hundred porcupines.
The Bible is full of interesting caricatures. In the first book of the Bible, Guinessis, Adam and Eve were created from an apple tree.
One of their children, Cain, asked, "Am I my brother's son?"
Moses led the Hebrew slaves to the Red Sea, where they made unleavened bread which is bread made without any ingredients.
Moses went up on Mount Cyanide to get the ten commandments. He died before he ever reached Canada.
The airplane was invented and first flown by the Marx brothers.
Hitler's instrumentality of terror was the Gespacho.
Queen Elizabeth was the "Virgin Queen." As a queen she was a success. When she exposed herself before her troops they all shouted "hurrah."
Noah's wife was Joan of Ark.Middle Eastern history was written by Florence of Arabia.
The Soviets erected the Berlin Mall?
Plato invented reality. He was teacher to Harris Tottle, author of The Republicans.
Germany's William II had a chimp on his shoulder and therefore had to ride his horse with only one hand.
The Germans took the by-pass around France's Marginal Line. This was known as the "Blintz Krieg."
Corruption grew especially ripe in Zaire, where Mobutu was known to indulge in more than an occasional little armadillo.The plurious of wealth was therefore uneven. The rural populous was reduced to tenement farming.
The Boston Tea Party was held at Pearl Harbor.
Americans wanted no involvement in the French and Indian War because they did not want to fight in India.
Moses was told by Jesus Christ to lead the people out of Egypt into the Sahaira Desert. The Book of Exodus describes this trip, including the Ten Commandments, various special effects and the building of the Suez Canal.
Zorroastrologism was founded by Zorro. This was a duelist religion.
During the Dark Ages it was mostly dark.
Christianity was just another mystery cult until Jesus was born.
The mother of Jesus was Mary, who was different from other women because of her immaculate contraption.
The fall of empires has been a good thing, because it gives more people a chance to exploit their own people without outside interference.
Roman girls who did not marry could become Vestigal Virgins, a group of women who were dedicated to burning the internal flame.
Machiavelli, who was often unemployed, wrote The Prince to get a job with Richard Nixon.
History is nothing more than the behind of the present.This gives incites from the anals of the past.
The British Empire is in a state of recline. Its colonies have slowly dribbled away leaving only the odd speck on the map.
Civil rights leader Martin Luther Junior was slain in the 1960s, shortly after making his famous "If I Had A Hammer" speech.
World War II began turning around when the Allies landed near Italy's toe and gradually advanced up her leg.
Hitler shot himself in the bonker.
When the Davy Jones Index crashed in 1929 many people were left to political incineration. Some, like John Paul Sart, retreated into extraterrestrialism.
The New Deal was an idea inspired by Franklin Eleanor Roosavelt.
Satan Husane invaided Kiwi and Sandy Arabia.
Spartacus led a slave rebellion in ancient Rome and then appeared in a movie about it later.
Judyism had one big God named Yahoo.
Martin Luther nailed 95 theocrats to a church door.
The greatest writer of the Renaissance was William Shakespeare. He was born in the year 1564, supposedly on his birthday. He never made much money and is famous only because of his plays. He wrote tragedies, and comedies, all in Islamic pentameter.
Romeo and Juliet are an example of a heroic couplet.Romeo's last wish was to be laid by Juliet.
Writing at the same time as Shakespeare was Miguel Cervantes. He wrote Donkey Hote.
During the Renaissance America began.
Christopher Columbus was a great navigator who discovered America while cursing about the Atlantic. His ships were called the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Fe.
Later, the Pilgrims crossed the ocean, and this was called Pilgrim's Progress. The winter of 1620 was a hard one for the settlers. Many people died and many babies were born. Captain John Smith was responsible for all this.
One of the causes of the Revolutionary War was the English put tacks in their tea. Also, the colonists would send their parcels through the post without stamps. Finally the colonists won the War and no longer had to pay for taxis.Delegates from the original 13 states formed the Contented Congress.
Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin were two singers of the Declaration of Independence.
Franklin discovered electricity by rubbing two cats backwards and declared, "A horse divided against itself cannot stand."Franklin died in 1790 and is still dead.
Soon the Constitution of the United States was adopted to secure domestic hostility.Under the constitution the people enjoyed the right to keep bare arms.
Abraham Lincoln became America's greatest Precedent. Lincoln's mother died in infancy, and he was born in a log cabin which he built with his own hands.
Abraham Lincoln freed the slaves by signing the Emasculation Proclamation.
On the night of April 14, 1865, Lincoln went to the theater and got shot in his seat by one of the actors in a moving picture show. The believed assinator was John Wilkes Booth, a supposedly insane actor. This ruined Booth's career.
The Greeks were a highly sculptured people, and without them we wouldn't have history. The Greeks also had myths. A myth is a female moth.
The Greeks invented three kinds of columns, Corinthian, Doric and Ironic.
Socrates was a famous Greek teacher who went around giving people advice. They killed him. Socrates died from an overdose of wedlock. After his death, his career suffered a dramatic decline.
In the Olympic games, Greeks ran races, jumped, hurled the biscuits, and threw the java.
Eventually, the Romans conquered the Greeks. History calls people Romans because they never stayed in one place for very long.
Julius Caesar extinguished himself on the battlefields of Gaul. The Ides of March murdered him because they thought he was going to be made king. Dying, he gasped out: "Tee hee, Brutus."
Nero was a cruel tyranny who would torture his subjects by playing the fiddle to them.
Joan of Arc was burnt to a steak and was cannonized by Bernard Shaw.
Finally Magna Carta provided that no man should be hanged twice for the same offense.
In midevil times most people were alliterate.
The greatest writer of the futile ages was Chaucer, who wrote many poems and verses and also wrote literature.
Another story was William Tell, who shot an arrow through an apple while standing on his son's head.
It was an age of great inventions and discoveries. Gutenberg invented removable type and the Bible.
Another important invention was the circulation of blood.
Sir Walter Raleigh is a historical figure because he invented cigarettes and started smoking.
Meanwhile in Europe, the enlightenment was a reasonable time. Voltaire invented electricity and also wrote a book called Candy.Gravity was invented by Issac Walton. It is chiefly noticeable in the autumn when the apples are falling off the trees.
Johann Bach wrote a great many musical compositions and had a large number of children. In between he practiced on an old spinster which he kept up in his attic.Bach died from 1750 to the present.
Bach was the most famous composer in the world and so was Handel.
Handel was half German half Italian and half English. He was very large.
Beethoven wrote music even though he was deaf. He was so deaf he rote loud music. He took long walks in the forest even when everyone was calling for him. Beethoven expired in 1827 and later died for this.
The sun never set on the British Empire because the British Empire is in the East and the sun sets in the West.
Queen Victoria was the longest queen. She sat on a thorn for 63 years. She was a moral woman who practiced virtue. Her death was the final event which ended her reign.
The nineteenth century was a time of a great many thoughts and inventions. People stopped reproducing by hand and started reproducing by machine. The invention of the steamboat caused a network of rivers to spring up. Cyrus McCormick invented the McCormick raper, which did the work of a hundred men.
Louis Pasteur discovered a cure for rabbis.
Charles Darwin was a naturalist who wrote the Organ of the Species.
Karl Marx became one of the Marx brothers.
The First World War, caused by the assignation of the Arch-Duck by an anahist, ushered in a new error in the anals of human history.
Here is our contribution to the merriment. These are actual excerpts from tests and reports from students in our country...
The climate of the Sarah is such that the inhabitants have to live elsewhere.Ancient Egypt was inhabited by mummies and they all wrote in hydraulics.
The Egyptians built the Pyramids in the shape of huge triangular cubes.They lived in the Sarah Dessert and traveled by Camelot.
The French Revolution was accomplished before it happened and catapulted into Napoleon. Napoleon wanted an heir to inherit his power, but since Josephine was a baroness, she couldn't have any children.
Actually, Homer was not written by Homer but by another man of that name.
The next great author was John Milton. Milton wrote Paradise Lost. Then his wife died and he wrote Paradise Regained.
Sir Francis Drake circumcised the world with a 100-foot clipper.Solomom had three hundred wives and seven hundred porcupines.
The Bible is full of interesting caricatures. In the first book of the Bible, Guinessis, Adam and Eve were created from an apple tree.
One of their children, Cain, asked, "Am I my brother's son?"
Moses led the Hebrew slaves to the Red Sea, where they made unleavened bread which is bread made without any ingredients.
Moses went up on Mount Cyanide to get the ten commandments. He died before he ever reached Canada.
The airplane was invented and first flown by the Marx brothers.
Hitler's instrumentality of terror was the Gespacho.
Queen Elizabeth was the "Virgin Queen." As a queen she was a success. When she exposed herself before her troops they all shouted "hurrah."
Noah's wife was Joan of Ark.Middle Eastern history was written by Florence of Arabia.
The Soviets erected the Berlin Mall?
Plato invented reality. He was teacher to Harris Tottle, author of The Republicans.
Germany's William II had a chimp on his shoulder and therefore had to ride his horse with only one hand.
The Germans took the by-pass around France's Marginal Line. This was known as the "Blintz Krieg."
Corruption grew especially ripe in Zaire, where Mobutu was known to indulge in more than an occasional little armadillo.The plurious of wealth was therefore uneven. The rural populous was reduced to tenement farming.
The Boston Tea Party was held at Pearl Harbor.
Americans wanted no involvement in the French and Indian War because they did not want to fight in India.
Moses was told by Jesus Christ to lead the people out of Egypt into the Sahaira Desert. The Book of Exodus describes this trip, including the Ten Commandments, various special effects and the building of the Suez Canal.
Zorroastrologism was founded by Zorro. This was a duelist religion.
During the Dark Ages it was mostly dark.
Christianity was just another mystery cult until Jesus was born.
The mother of Jesus was Mary, who was different from other women because of her immaculate contraption.
The fall of empires has been a good thing, because it gives more people a chance to exploit their own people without outside interference.
Roman girls who did not marry could become Vestigal Virgins, a group of women who were dedicated to burning the internal flame.
Machiavelli, who was often unemployed, wrote The Prince to get a job with Richard Nixon.
History is nothing more than the behind of the present.This gives incites from the anals of the past.
The British Empire is in a state of recline. Its colonies have slowly dribbled away leaving only the odd speck on the map.
Civil rights leader Martin Luther Junior was slain in the 1960s, shortly after making his famous "If I Had A Hammer" speech.
World War II began turning around when the Allies landed near Italy's toe and gradually advanced up her leg.
Hitler shot himself in the bonker.
When the Davy Jones Index crashed in 1929 many people were left to political incineration. Some, like John Paul Sart, retreated into extraterrestrialism.
The New Deal was an idea inspired by Franklin Eleanor Roosavelt.
Satan Husane invaided Kiwi and Sandy Arabia.
Spartacus led a slave rebellion in ancient Rome and then appeared in a movie about it later.
Judyism had one big God named Yahoo.
Martin Luther nailed 95 theocrats to a church door.
The greatest writer of the Renaissance was William Shakespeare. He was born in the year 1564, supposedly on his birthday. He never made much money and is famous only because of his plays. He wrote tragedies, and comedies, all in Islamic pentameter.
Romeo and Juliet are an example of a heroic couplet.Romeo's last wish was to be laid by Juliet.
Writing at the same time as Shakespeare was Miguel Cervantes. He wrote Donkey Hote.
During the Renaissance America began.
Christopher Columbus was a great navigator who discovered America while cursing about the Atlantic. His ships were called the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Fe.
Later, the Pilgrims crossed the ocean, and this was called Pilgrim's Progress. The winter of 1620 was a hard one for the settlers. Many people died and many babies were born. Captain John Smith was responsible for all this.
One of the causes of the Revolutionary War was the English put tacks in their tea. Also, the colonists would send their parcels through the post without stamps. Finally the colonists won the War and no longer had to pay for taxis.Delegates from the original 13 states formed the Contented Congress.
Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin were two singers of the Declaration of Independence.
Franklin discovered electricity by rubbing two cats backwards and declared, "A horse divided against itself cannot stand."Franklin died in 1790 and is still dead.
Soon the Constitution of the United States was adopted to secure domestic hostility.Under the constitution the people enjoyed the right to keep bare arms.
Abraham Lincoln became America's greatest Precedent. Lincoln's mother died in infancy, and he was born in a log cabin which he built with his own hands.
Abraham Lincoln freed the slaves by signing the Emasculation Proclamation.
On the night of April 14, 1865, Lincoln went to the theater and got shot in his seat by one of the actors in a moving picture show. The believed assinator was John Wilkes Booth, a supposedly insane actor. This ruined Booth's career.
The Greeks were a highly sculptured people, and without them we wouldn't have history. The Greeks also had myths. A myth is a female moth.
The Greeks invented three kinds of columns, Corinthian, Doric and Ironic.
Socrates was a famous Greek teacher who went around giving people advice. They killed him. Socrates died from an overdose of wedlock. After his death, his career suffered a dramatic decline.
In the Olympic games, Greeks ran races, jumped, hurled the biscuits, and threw the java.
Eventually, the Romans conquered the Greeks. History calls people Romans because they never stayed in one place for very long.
Julius Caesar extinguished himself on the battlefields of Gaul. The Ides of March murdered him because they thought he was going to be made king. Dying, he gasped out: "Tee hee, Brutus."
Nero was a cruel tyranny who would torture his subjects by playing the fiddle to them.
Joan of Arc was burnt to a steak and was cannonized by Bernard Shaw.
Finally Magna Carta provided that no man should be hanged twice for the same offense.
In midevil times most people were alliterate.
The greatest writer of the futile ages was Chaucer, who wrote many poems and verses and also wrote literature.
Another story was William Tell, who shot an arrow through an apple while standing on his son's head.
It was an age of great inventions and discoveries. Gutenberg invented removable type and the Bible.
Another important invention was the circulation of blood.
Sir Walter Raleigh is a historical figure because he invented cigarettes and started smoking.
Meanwhile in Europe, the enlightenment was a reasonable time. Voltaire invented electricity and also wrote a book called Candy.Gravity was invented by Issac Walton. It is chiefly noticeable in the autumn when the apples are falling off the trees.
Johann Bach wrote a great many musical compositions and had a large number of children. In between he practiced on an old spinster which he kept up in his attic.Bach died from 1750 to the present.
Bach was the most famous composer in the world and so was Handel.
Handel was half German half Italian and half English. He was very large.
Beethoven wrote music even though he was deaf. He was so deaf he rote loud music. He took long walks in the forest even when everyone was calling for him. Beethoven expired in 1827 and later died for this.
The sun never set on the British Empire because the British Empire is in the East and the sun sets in the West.
Queen Victoria was the longest queen. She sat on a thorn for 63 years. She was a moral woman who practiced virtue. Her death was the final event which ended her reign.
The nineteenth century was a time of a great many thoughts and inventions. People stopped reproducing by hand and started reproducing by machine. The invention of the steamboat caused a network of rivers to spring up. Cyrus McCormick invented the McCormick raper, which did the work of a hundred men.
Louis Pasteur discovered a cure for rabbis.
Charles Darwin was a naturalist who wrote the Organ of the Species.
Karl Marx became one of the Marx brothers.
The First World War, caused by the assignation of the Arch-Duck by an anahist, ushered in a new error in the anals of human history.
Christmas Story from the Front Lines
This is a good one. Merry Christmas to the brave men and women serving in our nation's War on Terror.
Here's the story.
Here's the story.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
A Waste of Time?
Apparently, few Americans were paying much attention. Homosexual activists need to accept the fact that most Americans do not want gay marriage. Americans have become more tolerant towards homosexuality but there is a waterline.
In case you missed it, here's the story about "gay day."
In case you missed it, here's the story about "gay day."
Monday, November 24, 2008
E Harmony Shake Down
This one will get you angry. It underscores our homosexual adversaries will and their persistence. Gay groups believe that Obama's election will serve as their springboard to mainstreaming their radical agenda. Time will tell but vigilance is more than required right now.
Unfortunately, one of the good guys has taken a hit. E Harmony, the leader in quality online dating services has just been mugged by the "politically correct" mob and their homosexual allies.
You can read the story here.
Unfortunately, the cost of ongoing expensive litigation forced founder Neil Warren and his business to capitulate. I fear though that this capitulation will not satisfy the wolves. Emboldened, other pro-family, Christian companies may be targeted for similar treatment.
Unfortunately, one of the good guys has taken a hit. E Harmony, the leader in quality online dating services has just been mugged by the "politically correct" mob and their homosexual allies.
You can read the story here.
Unfortunately, the cost of ongoing expensive litigation forced founder Neil Warren and his business to capitulate. I fear though that this capitulation will not satisfy the wolves. Emboldened, other pro-family, Christian companies may be targeted for similar treatment.
Monday, November 17, 2008
Virtual Affair Leads to a Real Divorce
You will have to read this one to believe it.
Scripture makes the point that its not only our actions which can be sinful, but what's in our hearts too (Matt. 5:27-28)....
Scripture makes the point that its not only our actions which can be sinful, but what's in our hearts too (Matt. 5:27-28)....
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
The Rising Tide Against Life
If President-elect Obama is to be taken at his word ( and time will tell if this is true), shortly after his inauguration, more unborn babies will die. Abortionists are crowing about Obama's pledge to refund international abortions using your tax dollars. President Bush ended this practice shortly after his election in 2000. Now its back. Additionally, Obama's congressional allies are poised to send him the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA). This new law would gut current state laws that regulate abortions. This law would permit abortion on demand up until the due date and would use your tax dollars to fund it.
This is an unfortunate consequence (one of many we fear) of electing a leader who does not value unborn life.
We believe that this decision demands a robust response from all people who value the God-given gift of life.
This is an unfortunate consequence (one of many we fear) of electing a leader who does not value unborn life.
We believe that this decision demands a robust response from all people who value the God-given gift of life.
Thursday, November 06, 2008
California Homosexual Activists Challenge Marriage Ban
No surprises here. Page one in the homosexual activists playbook is to use sympathetic courts to gain their wishes...Keep in mind that they cannot win at the ballot box...Note the ominous comment at the bottom of the story about how the California Supreme Court has elevated sexual orientation into a protected class like gender, rac, etc.
Keep praying.
Gay rights backers file 3 lawsuits challenging Prop. 8
Lawyers for same-sex couples argue that the anti-gay marriage measure is an illegal constitutional revision. Backers of the measure attack the suits.
By Maura Dolan and Tami Abdollah November 6, 2008. Los Angeles Times
Reporting from San Francisco and Los Angeles -- After losing at the polls, gay rights supporters filed three lawsuits Wednesday asking the California Supreme Court to overturn Proposition 8, an effort the measure's supporters called an attempt to subvert the will of voters."If they want to legalize gay marriage, what they should do is bring an initiative themselves and ask the people to approve it," said Frank Schubert, co-chairman of the Proposition 8 campaign. "But they don't. They go behind the people's back to the courts and try and force an agenda on the rest of society."
Lawyers for same-sex couples argued that the anti-gay-marriage measure was an illegal constitutional revision -- not a more limited amendment, as backers maintained -- because it fundamentally altered the guarantee of equal protection. A constitutional revision, unlike an amendment, must be approved by the Legislature before going to voters.The state high court has twice before struck down ballot measures as illegal constitutional revisions, but those initiatives involved "a broader scope of changes," said former California Supreme Court Justice Joseph Grodin, who publicly opposed Proposition 8 and was part of an earlier legal challenge to it. The court has suggested that a revision may be distinguished from an amendment by the breadth and the nature of the change, Grodin saidStill, Grodin said, he believes that the challenge has legal merit, though he declined to make any predictions. Santa Clara University law professor Gerald Uelmen called the case "a stretch."
UC Irvine Law School Dean Erwin Chemerinsky said his research found too little case law on constitutional revisions to predict how the state high court might resolve the question."There is very little law about what can be done by amendment as opposed to revision," he said.Jennifer Pizer, a staff lawyer for Lambda Legal, said the initiative met the test of a revision because it had far-reaching magnitude."The magnitude here is that you are effectively rendering equal protection a nullity if a simple majority can so easily carve an exception into it," she said. "Equal protection is supposed to prevent the targeting and subjugation of a minority group by a simple majority vote."Glen Lavy, an attorney for the Proposition 8 campaign, called the lawsuits "frivolous" and "a brazen attempt to gut the democratic process."The first action was filed by the ACLU, the National Center for Lesbian Rights and Lambda Legal. Santa Clara County and the cities of San Francisco and Los Angeles also sued, and Los Angeles lawyer Gloria Allred filed a third suit on behalf of a married lesbian couple.All the lawsuits cited the constitutional revision argument, and two of them asked the court to block Proposition 8 from taking effect while the legal cases were pending."The court must hold that California may not issue licenses to non-gay couples because if it does it would be violating the equal protection clause," Allred said at a news conference.A California Supreme Court spokeswoman said the court would act "as quickly as possible" on the challenges.Other lawsuits could follow, but gay rights groups have called on supporters not to file cases in federal court. They fear that a loss at the U.S. Supreme Court could set back the marriage movement decades."We think it is early to go into federal court and ask federal courts to say we have a federal right to marry," Pizer said.In addition to going to court, gay rights advocates sought to assure about 18,000 same-sex couples that their marriages will remain valid.The groups cited comments by Atty. Gen. Jerry Brown, who has said the initiative was not retroactive. If the marriages are challenged in court, that case too would go to the California Supreme Court. Experts differ on whether the law would protect the marriages.The California Supreme Court voted 4 to 3 on May 15 that a state ban on same-sex marriage was unconstitutional. The ruling also elevated sexual orientation to the constitutional status of race and gender, an elevation that provides strong legal protection from discrimination.
Keep praying.
Gay rights backers file 3 lawsuits challenging Prop. 8
Lawyers for same-sex couples argue that the anti-gay marriage measure is an illegal constitutional revision. Backers of the measure attack the suits.
By Maura Dolan and Tami Abdollah November 6, 2008. Los Angeles Times
Reporting from San Francisco and Los Angeles -- After losing at the polls, gay rights supporters filed three lawsuits Wednesday asking the California Supreme Court to overturn Proposition 8, an effort the measure's supporters called an attempt to subvert the will of voters."If they want to legalize gay marriage, what they should do is bring an initiative themselves and ask the people to approve it," said Frank Schubert, co-chairman of the Proposition 8 campaign. "But they don't. They go behind the people's back to the courts and try and force an agenda on the rest of society."
Lawyers for same-sex couples argued that the anti-gay-marriage measure was an illegal constitutional revision -- not a more limited amendment, as backers maintained -- because it fundamentally altered the guarantee of equal protection. A constitutional revision, unlike an amendment, must be approved by the Legislature before going to voters.The state high court has twice before struck down ballot measures as illegal constitutional revisions, but those initiatives involved "a broader scope of changes," said former California Supreme Court Justice Joseph Grodin, who publicly opposed Proposition 8 and was part of an earlier legal challenge to it. The court has suggested that a revision may be distinguished from an amendment by the breadth and the nature of the change, Grodin saidStill, Grodin said, he believes that the challenge has legal merit, though he declined to make any predictions. Santa Clara University law professor Gerald Uelmen called the case "a stretch."
UC Irvine Law School Dean Erwin Chemerinsky said his research found too little case law on constitutional revisions to predict how the state high court might resolve the question."There is very little law about what can be done by amendment as opposed to revision," he said.Jennifer Pizer, a staff lawyer for Lambda Legal, said the initiative met the test of a revision because it had far-reaching magnitude."The magnitude here is that you are effectively rendering equal protection a nullity if a simple majority can so easily carve an exception into it," she said. "Equal protection is supposed to prevent the targeting and subjugation of a minority group by a simple majority vote."Glen Lavy, an attorney for the Proposition 8 campaign, called the lawsuits "frivolous" and "a brazen attempt to gut the democratic process."The first action was filed by the ACLU, the National Center for Lesbian Rights and Lambda Legal. Santa Clara County and the cities of San Francisco and Los Angeles also sued, and Los Angeles lawyer Gloria Allred filed a third suit on behalf of a married lesbian couple.All the lawsuits cited the constitutional revision argument, and two of them asked the court to block Proposition 8 from taking effect while the legal cases were pending."The court must hold that California may not issue licenses to non-gay couples because if it does it would be violating the equal protection clause," Allred said at a news conference.A California Supreme Court spokeswoman said the court would act "as quickly as possible" on the challenges.Other lawsuits could follow, but gay rights groups have called on supporters not to file cases in federal court. They fear that a loss at the U.S. Supreme Court could set back the marriage movement decades."We think it is early to go into federal court and ask federal courts to say we have a federal right to marry," Pizer said.In addition to going to court, gay rights advocates sought to assure about 18,000 same-sex couples that their marriages will remain valid.The groups cited comments by Atty. Gen. Jerry Brown, who has said the initiative was not retroactive. If the marriages are challenged in court, that case too would go to the California Supreme Court. Experts differ on whether the law would protect the marriages.The California Supreme Court voted 4 to 3 on May 15 that a state ban on same-sex marriage was unconstitutional. The ruling also elevated sexual orientation to the constitutional status of race and gender, an elevation that provides strong legal protection from discrimination.
Wednesday, November 05, 2008
Good News from California!
There are a few bright spots nationally after Tuesday's election.
One is in California where voters passed Proposition 8, banning homosexual marriages and overturning an earlier decision by the California State Supreme Court.
Here's the story.
One is in California where voters passed Proposition 8, banning homosexual marriages and overturning an earlier decision by the California State Supreme Court.
Here's the story.
Monday, November 03, 2008
Voting for Your Family
Its the economy, stupid? Yes, but sadly so. Unfortunately, many Americans pay little attention unless something takes a bite out of their wallet.
This election will have consequences for the glue of our culture. While economics are important, vital issues like life, marriage, euthanasia, stem cell research, religious freedom, etc., will be shaped by the presidential winner. Their philosophies in these areas and their appointment of judges will set a course for America's culture for the next decade or more.
Where do McCain and Obama land on these issues? Here are our predictions.
1- Judges. The next president will likely appoint two if not three U.S. Supreme Court Justices plus scores of lesser judges. Their decisions on key issues will impact this country for 50-100 years. Obama will appoint leftist activist jurists, who will find and uphold rights expanding abortion on demand, homosexual marriage and hate crimes. Additionally, Obama appointees will rule with the view that the Constitution is a living document, easily changed by the issues of the time. McCain appointees will be more akin to Chief Justice John Roberts; generally conservative and religiously sensitive. His appointees will lean more towards strict interpretation of the Constitution versus activist jurists that Obama would appoint. Obama, as most liberals, sees the court as a prime tool to enact social change. McCain sees the court as protectors of tradition and conservative values.
2- Marriage. The definition of marriage battle continues to rage nation-wide. The good news for pro-marriage supporters is that the traditional definition of marriage is winning in most states. Unfortunately though, the ultimate firewall failed-Congress during the Bush year's was unable to ignite a U.S. Constitutional Amendment. McCain has always supported traditional marriage. However, he is not a supporter of a U.S. Constitutional Amendment, deferring that decision to the states. Obama, on the other hand, wants it both ways-support homosexual marriage and traditional marriage. Oil and water don't mix though. McCain will be supportive of citizen-led attempts to strengthen traditional marriage and to push back alternative relationships. An Obama presidency will mean an uphill fight for pro-marriage forces.
3-Life. There is a stark difference on this issue. Simply, Obama sports one of the most radical abortion records in Congress. McCain has been reliably pro-life. Factoid: More babies will die under an Obama presidency while more will live under McCain. Obama has also announced that his first act will be to sign FOCA, the Freedom of Choice Act, which will sweep away many current state regulations which regulate abortion practices.
4-Religion in the public square. Obama and his secularist allies will work to expunge and marginalize conservative Christians from the public square. These believers will be seen as too radical, intolerant, bigoted and judgemental. On the other hand, McCain will likely continue the federal government's growing partnership of faith based initiatives, started by President Bush.
The soul of America will be shaped by our vote. What will America decide?
This election will have consequences for the glue of our culture. While economics are important, vital issues like life, marriage, euthanasia, stem cell research, religious freedom, etc., will be shaped by the presidential winner. Their philosophies in these areas and their appointment of judges will set a course for America's culture for the next decade or more.
Where do McCain and Obama land on these issues? Here are our predictions.
1- Judges. The next president will likely appoint two if not three U.S. Supreme Court Justices plus scores of lesser judges. Their decisions on key issues will impact this country for 50-100 years. Obama will appoint leftist activist jurists, who will find and uphold rights expanding abortion on demand, homosexual marriage and hate crimes. Additionally, Obama appointees will rule with the view that the Constitution is a living document, easily changed by the issues of the time. McCain appointees will be more akin to Chief Justice John Roberts; generally conservative and religiously sensitive. His appointees will lean more towards strict interpretation of the Constitution versus activist jurists that Obama would appoint. Obama, as most liberals, sees the court as a prime tool to enact social change. McCain sees the court as protectors of tradition and conservative values.
2- Marriage. The definition of marriage battle continues to rage nation-wide. The good news for pro-marriage supporters is that the traditional definition of marriage is winning in most states. Unfortunately though, the ultimate firewall failed-Congress during the Bush year's was unable to ignite a U.S. Constitutional Amendment. McCain has always supported traditional marriage. However, he is not a supporter of a U.S. Constitutional Amendment, deferring that decision to the states. Obama, on the other hand, wants it both ways-support homosexual marriage and traditional marriage. Oil and water don't mix though. McCain will be supportive of citizen-led attempts to strengthen traditional marriage and to push back alternative relationships. An Obama presidency will mean an uphill fight for pro-marriage forces.
3-Life. There is a stark difference on this issue. Simply, Obama sports one of the most radical abortion records in Congress. McCain has been reliably pro-life. Factoid: More babies will die under an Obama presidency while more will live under McCain. Obama has also announced that his first act will be to sign FOCA, the Freedom of Choice Act, which will sweep away many current state regulations which regulate abortion practices.
4-Religion in the public square. Obama and his secularist allies will work to expunge and marginalize conservative Christians from the public square. These believers will be seen as too radical, intolerant, bigoted and judgemental. On the other hand, McCain will likely continue the federal government's growing partnership of faith based initiatives, started by President Bush.
The soul of America will be shaped by our vote. What will America decide?
Thursday, October 30, 2008
1948 and 2008 Elections Eeerily Similiar?
The election of 1948 has been deemed the greatest upset in American presidential races. Incumbent President Harry Truman, a Democrat, trailed by double digits entering into the final days of the race to challenger Governor George Dewey, Republican governor of New York.
Truman won by nearly 5 points and won over 300 electoral votes.
Could a repeat happen in 2008?
Here's more on the election of 1948.
Truman won by nearly 5 points and won over 300 electoral votes.
Could a repeat happen in 2008?
Here's more on the election of 1948.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Ritter To Be Sued Over Abortion Contracts
Oops. Did the Governor break the law to refund his political masters?
More below...
Lawsuit challenges $18 million in contractsawarded to Colo. abortionistsADF attorneys and allied attorneys file suit asking court to cancel illegal state contracts
DENVER — Alliance Defense Fund attorneys and allied attorneys filed suit Wednesday, asking a Colorado court to cancel $18 million in illegal state contracts awarded over the last year to a Planned Parenthood affiliate and a Boulder abortion provider.“Public officials cannot toss aside the democratic process and the rule of law,” said lead counsel and ADF-allied attorney Barry Arrington of the Arvada law firm Arrington & Associates, P.C. “The governor and other state officials are not at liberty to ignore the will of the people on this matter. Colorado voters amended the state constitution to prohibit tax dollar subsidies to abortion providers.”The lawsuit, filed on behalf of Colorado taxpayer Mark Hotaling, contends that five contracts which Gov. Bill Ritter and the executive director of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Jim Martin, awarded to two abortion providers unconstitutionally use taxpayer funds to subsidize abortion.In 1984, Colorado voters approved the Abortion Funding Prohibition Amendment to the Colorado Constitution, which prohibits the direct or indirect use of public funds to pay for abortion. In 2001, the Health Department, under then-Executive Director Jane Norton, conducted an audit of the operations of Rocky Mountain Planned Parenthood and its affiliate Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains Services Corporation. The department ended funding for Planned Parenthood after finding that it indirectly subsidized the abortion operations of its subsidiary.Under Ritter and Martin, however, the department disregarded the ruling and awarded five funding contracts to Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains Services Corporation and Boulder Valley Women’s Health Center, which both provide abortions. The funding of their abortion operations is in direct violation of the Abortion Funding Prohibition Amendment.The lawsuit asks the court to declare that the contracts violate the Colorado Constitution and to prohibit the Colorado Department of Health from awarding further contracts to the two abortion providers.“The people of Colorado felt strongly that no taxpayer should be forced to pay for a procedure that takes innocent human life, so they amended the state constitution to put a stop to it,” said ADF Senior Legal Counsel Steven H. Aden. “Apparently, Gov. Ritter felt so strongly to the contrary that he was willing to ignore the law and circumvent the will of the people to impose public funding for abortion on demand.”The complaint filed with the District Court for the City and County of Denver, Colorado, in Hotaling v. Ritter is available at www.telladf.org/UserDocs/HotalingComplaint.pdf.
More below...
Lawsuit challenges $18 million in contractsawarded to Colo. abortionistsADF attorneys and allied attorneys file suit asking court to cancel illegal state contracts
DENVER — Alliance Defense Fund attorneys and allied attorneys filed suit Wednesday, asking a Colorado court to cancel $18 million in illegal state contracts awarded over the last year to a Planned Parenthood affiliate and a Boulder abortion provider.“Public officials cannot toss aside the democratic process and the rule of law,” said lead counsel and ADF-allied attorney Barry Arrington of the Arvada law firm Arrington & Associates, P.C. “The governor and other state officials are not at liberty to ignore the will of the people on this matter. Colorado voters amended the state constitution to prohibit tax dollar subsidies to abortion providers.”The lawsuit, filed on behalf of Colorado taxpayer Mark Hotaling, contends that five contracts which Gov. Bill Ritter and the executive director of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Jim Martin, awarded to two abortion providers unconstitutionally use taxpayer funds to subsidize abortion.In 1984, Colorado voters approved the Abortion Funding Prohibition Amendment to the Colorado Constitution, which prohibits the direct or indirect use of public funds to pay for abortion. In 2001, the Health Department, under then-Executive Director Jane Norton, conducted an audit of the operations of Rocky Mountain Planned Parenthood and its affiliate Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains Services Corporation. The department ended funding for Planned Parenthood after finding that it indirectly subsidized the abortion operations of its subsidiary.Under Ritter and Martin, however, the department disregarded the ruling and awarded five funding contracts to Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains Services Corporation and Boulder Valley Women’s Health Center, which both provide abortions. The funding of their abortion operations is in direct violation of the Abortion Funding Prohibition Amendment.The lawsuit asks the court to declare that the contracts violate the Colorado Constitution and to prohibit the Colorado Department of Health from awarding further contracts to the two abortion providers.“The people of Colorado felt strongly that no taxpayer should be forced to pay for a procedure that takes innocent human life, so they amended the state constitution to put a stop to it,” said ADF Senior Legal Counsel Steven H. Aden. “Apparently, Gov. Ritter felt so strongly to the contrary that he was willing to ignore the law and circumvent the will of the people to impose public funding for abortion on demand.”The complaint filed with the District Court for the City and County of Denver, Colorado, in Hotaling v. Ritter is available at www.telladf.org/UserDocs/HotalingComplaint.pdf.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Homosexual "Marriage" Flourishes Under An Obama Presidency
I don't like to be Chicken Little and cry out that the sky will fall.
But, the fact of the matter remains that an Obama presidency will usher in an era of unprecedented social liberalism the like that this nation has never seen before.
Here's another case in point. Obama has publicly endorsed efforts to expand homosexual marriage. Despite the outright false statements by his Vice-Presidential running mate (maybe Biden hasn't read the fine print yet), an Obama presidency will be ground-zero for homosexual marriage activists.
Its already rolling in California. Here are the details from our friends at Family Research Council....PS-Your vote matters in three weeks.
Homosexuals Having a Field Day with CA Schools
"It really is what we call a teachable moment," argued Liz Jaroflow, the interim director of a local California charter school. This is how she and other administrators rationalize the decision to take a class of impressionable first graders on a field trip to their teachers' lesbian "wedding." At the suggestion of a parent, Jaroflow herded the five- and six-year-olds onto a bus during school hours last Friday and surprised Erin Carder and Kerri McCoy at City Hall. Now the unorthodox excursion is putting San Francisco's school district at the center of a national debate on counterfeit marriage. When asked what educational value the trip had, Jaroflow pointed to the "historical significance of same-sex marriage" and "civil rights." "...[I]t's not controversial..." she told reporters. "It's certainly an issue I would be willing to put my job on the line for." Whether or not the district will ask her to do so is unclear. According to the Chronicle, Jaroflow did ask for parents' permission, and two families opted out. Across California, however, voters are in disbelief. The trip, a disgraceful abuse of school time, is just a preview of the indoctrination to come if Proposition 8 fails. Ironically, this happened just days after "No on 8" launched ads last week claiming same-sex "marriage" would not be taught in schools, no matter what the outcome on November 4. Not only will it be taught, it's obvious that the lessons are already underway!
But, the fact of the matter remains that an Obama presidency will usher in an era of unprecedented social liberalism the like that this nation has never seen before.
Here's another case in point. Obama has publicly endorsed efforts to expand homosexual marriage. Despite the outright false statements by his Vice-Presidential running mate (maybe Biden hasn't read the fine print yet), an Obama presidency will be ground-zero for homosexual marriage activists.
Its already rolling in California. Here are the details from our friends at Family Research Council....PS-Your vote matters in three weeks.
Homosexuals Having a Field Day with CA Schools
"It really is what we call a teachable moment," argued Liz Jaroflow, the interim director of a local California charter school. This is how she and other administrators rationalize the decision to take a class of impressionable first graders on a field trip to their teachers' lesbian "wedding." At the suggestion of a parent, Jaroflow herded the five- and six-year-olds onto a bus during school hours last Friday and surprised Erin Carder and Kerri McCoy at City Hall. Now the unorthodox excursion is putting San Francisco's school district at the center of a national debate on counterfeit marriage. When asked what educational value the trip had, Jaroflow pointed to the "historical significance of same-sex marriage" and "civil rights." "...[I]t's not controversial..." she told reporters. "It's certainly an issue I would be willing to put my job on the line for." Whether or not the district will ask her to do so is unclear. According to the Chronicle, Jaroflow did ask for parents' permission, and two families opted out. Across California, however, voters are in disbelief. The trip, a disgraceful abuse of school time, is just a preview of the indoctrination to come if Proposition 8 fails. Ironically, this happened just days after "No on 8" launched ads last week claiming same-sex "marriage" would not be taught in schools, no matter what the outcome on November 4. Not only will it be taught, it's obvious that the lessons are already underway!
Freedom of Choice Act To Be Law Under Obama
If Barack Obama becomes the next President, more unborn babies will die.
Obama and his abortionist congressional allies will quickly pass the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA).
This is the most radical piece of pro-abortion legislation ever considered by our nation. The details are chilling.
Here is a good synopsis of FOCA.
The entire text is listed below...
What FOCA Would Do:
All sides in the abortion fight agree, if FOCA were to pass both chambers of Congress and be signed by a pro-abortion President, it would, among other effects, provide for taxpayer-funded abortion on demand even late in pregnancy, grant abortionists immunity from legal action, allow abortionists the discretion to perform abortions on minors without notifying a parent, and deny health care workers the right to refuse to make abortion referrals as a matter of conscience.
"The legislation (FOCA) would invalidate existing and future laws that interfere with or discriminate against the exercise of the rights protected . It also would provide an individual aggrieved by a violation of the act a private right of civil action in order to obtain appropriate relie f" - Planned Parenthood website.
"As a general matter, if FOCA were enacted, it would wipe out a very large number of existing state laws on abortion, substantially impede the ability of states to regulate abortion, and override nearly 40 years of jurisprudential experience on the subject of abortion." - USCCB Memorandum on FOCA
FOCA would automatically overturn state abortion reporting requirements in all 50 states, 44 states' laws concerning parental involvement, 40 states' laws on restricting later-term abortions, 46 states' conscience protection laws for individual health care providers, 27 states' conscience protection laws for institutions, 38 states' bans on partial-birth abortions, 33 states' laws on requiring counseling before an abortion, and 16 states' laws concerning ultrasounds before an abortion.
FOCA seeks to eliminate any civil pro-life opposition in the public square:
"The bill would give women the right to file civil suits against any person or government agency that sought to limit their ability to get an abortion." - MSNBC Briefing Book: Issues '08.
Presumably this would not only include federal and state legislators who merely introduce legislation seeking restrictions on abortion but also against peaceful pro-lifers who pray and offer alternatives in front of abortion facilities.
FOCA-type legislation increases rates of abortion:
According to NARAL's web site, seven states ( California , Connecticut , Hawaii , Maine , Maryland , Nevada and Washington ) have legislation on the books similar to FOCA.
In Maryland , FOCA-type legislation has been on the books since 1991. According to Planned Parenthood's Alan Guttmacher Institute, the abortion rate in the United States DECREASED nine percent since 2000 to 19.4 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age in 2005. By contrast, the state of Maryland in 2005 produced a rate of 31.5 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age, an INCREASE of eight percent since 1991.
Other states with similar FOCA laws on the books show abortion rates larger than the national average of 19.4 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age:
California has a rate of 27.1 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age. Abortions in California represent 17.3 of all abortions in the United States .
Connecticut has a rate of 23.6 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age. The rate has increased 12% since 2000, when it was 21.1 abortions per 1,000 women.
Hawaii has a rate of 21.8 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age.
Nevada 's rate is 27.0 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age.
Obama and his abortionist congressional allies will quickly pass the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA).
This is the most radical piece of pro-abortion legislation ever considered by our nation. The details are chilling.
Here is a good synopsis of FOCA.
The entire text is listed below...
What FOCA Would Do:
All sides in the abortion fight agree, if FOCA were to pass both chambers of Congress and be signed by a pro-abortion President, it would, among other effects, provide for taxpayer-funded abortion on demand even late in pregnancy, grant abortionists immunity from legal action, allow abortionists the discretion to perform abortions on minors without notifying a parent, and deny health care workers the right to refuse to make abortion referrals as a matter of conscience.
"The legislation (FOCA) would invalidate existing and future laws that interfere with or discriminate against the exercise of the rights protected . It also would provide an individual aggrieved by a violation of the act a private right of civil action in order to obtain appropriate relie f" - Planned Parenthood website.
"As a general matter, if FOCA were enacted, it would wipe out a very large number of existing state laws on abortion, substantially impede the ability of states to regulate abortion, and override nearly 40 years of jurisprudential experience on the subject of abortion." - USCCB Memorandum on FOCA
FOCA would automatically overturn state abortion reporting requirements in all 50 states, 44 states' laws concerning parental involvement, 40 states' laws on restricting later-term abortions, 46 states' conscience protection laws for individual health care providers, 27 states' conscience protection laws for institutions, 38 states' bans on partial-birth abortions, 33 states' laws on requiring counseling before an abortion, and 16 states' laws concerning ultrasounds before an abortion.
FOCA seeks to eliminate any civil pro-life opposition in the public square:
"The bill would give women the right to file civil suits against any person or government agency that sought to limit their ability to get an abortion." - MSNBC Briefing Book: Issues '08.
Presumably this would not only include federal and state legislators who merely introduce legislation seeking restrictions on abortion but also against peaceful pro-lifers who pray and offer alternatives in front of abortion facilities.
FOCA-type legislation increases rates of abortion:
According to NARAL's web site, seven states ( California , Connecticut , Hawaii , Maine , Maryland , Nevada and Washington ) have legislation on the books similar to FOCA.
In Maryland , FOCA-type legislation has been on the books since 1991. According to Planned Parenthood's Alan Guttmacher Institute, the abortion rate in the United States DECREASED nine percent since 2000 to 19.4 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age in 2005. By contrast, the state of Maryland in 2005 produced a rate of 31.5 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age, an INCREASE of eight percent since 1991.
Other states with similar FOCA laws on the books show abortion rates larger than the national average of 19.4 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age:
California has a rate of 27.1 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age. Abortions in California represent 17.3 of all abortions in the United States .
Connecticut has a rate of 23.6 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age. The rate has increased 12% since 2000, when it was 21.1 abortions per 1,000 women.
Hawaii has a rate of 21.8 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age.
Nevada 's rate is 27.0 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age.
Wednesday, October 08, 2008
"Flipper Bill" Ritter Wrong Again on Life.
C'mon Guv.
When you ran for election in 2006, you touted yourself as a pro-life Catholic Democrat, who valued the sanctity of life.
Yet on Tuesday, you aligned yourself with the abortion crowd, cronies and rationalizers. The issue at hand-Amendment 48, which simply states that life begins at conception.
Here's the link to yesterday's story.
What I don't understand today is how a "pro-life' Catholic can oppose this amendment?
Maybe you haven't been totally honest with us. Or maybe you have made a political calculation-that forgiveness will be extended to you by the pro-lifers, whereas your leftist political masters (such as Planned Parenthood who funded your election) would take you to task in your re-election bid in 2010?
Next time be honest about your beliefs.
Either way, its time to call you Flipper Bill.
When you ran for election in 2006, you touted yourself as a pro-life Catholic Democrat, who valued the sanctity of life.
Yet on Tuesday, you aligned yourself with the abortion crowd, cronies and rationalizers. The issue at hand-Amendment 48, which simply states that life begins at conception.
Here's the link to yesterday's story.
What I don't understand today is how a "pro-life' Catholic can oppose this amendment?
Maybe you haven't been totally honest with us. Or maybe you have made a political calculation-that forgiveness will be extended to you by the pro-lifers, whereas your leftist political masters (such as Planned Parenthood who funded your election) would take you to task in your re-election bid in 2010?
Next time be honest about your beliefs.
Either way, its time to call you Flipper Bill.
Friday, October 03, 2008
Fresh Pickings from Canada on Same-Sex Marriage
Word is in from our northern cousins on the Canadian experiment with same-sex marriage. And its not pretty.
These new rights have spawned a wave of intolerance and oppression against any dissent.
Read here about the current Canadian experiment with same-sex marriages.
These new rights have spawned a wave of intolerance and oppression against any dissent.
Read here about the current Canadian experiment with same-sex marriages.
The Truth About the Financial Crisis
The truth hurts.
For days now, Democrat revisionists have laid the blame for the financial crisis at the feet of the Bush Administration.
But their charges are untrue. Maybe they just forgot the truth.
Interestingly, an article in the New York Times dated September 30, 1999 sheds light on this current darkness.
Here it is.
For days now, Democrat revisionists have laid the blame for the financial crisis at the feet of the Bush Administration.
But their charges are untrue. Maybe they just forgot the truth.
Interestingly, an article in the New York Times dated September 30, 1999 sheds light on this current darkness.
Here it is.
Monday, September 29, 2008
A Great Movie for Your Family
See this movie. If we want good movies to dominate in our theaters, we need to patronize a movie like Fireproof.
Here's the link.
Here's the link.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
A Liberal Gets Marriage Right
I don't particularly care for most of David Blankenhorn's liberal politics, but we can agree on this: marriage is the best thing for kids.
David has penned a great article in the Los Angeles Times. Its a must read for those who believe in marriage and its efficacy on our culture.
David has penned a great article in the Los Angeles Times. Its a must read for those who believe in marriage and its efficacy on our culture.
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Banning Gay Marriage Is A Big Deal....
It may not be a big issue for McCain or Obama, but it is the biggest social issue facing voters this fall.
And here is the question: will our nation allow homosexuals to marry?
California is ground zero. This fall, voters will decide whether current court ordered homosexual marriages will stand. We hope its overturned. We also hope that Californians will reject this latest overreach by a court and preserve the definition of marriage
We wish McCain was more vocal on this issue. Barack Obama has been pretty quite too. McCain states that he will support homosexual marriage bans while Obama will not.
Here is the latest on this key issue.
And here is the question: will our nation allow homosexuals to marry?
California is ground zero. This fall, voters will decide whether current court ordered homosexual marriages will stand. We hope its overturned. We also hope that Californians will reject this latest overreach by a court and preserve the definition of marriage
We wish McCain was more vocal on this issue. Barack Obama has been pretty quite too. McCain states that he will support homosexual marriage bans while Obama will not.
Here is the latest on this key issue.
Friday, September 12, 2008
The Fraud of Abortion
Abortion is one of the great evils of our time.
It robs the life given by God of an unborn child, extinguishing whatever potential and accomplishments that child would achieve with their life.
Not only does abortion kill unborn children but it emotionally scars those who have one and who perform this procedure. Yet, abortionists believe that freeing a woman from an unintended pregnancy is a higher choice irregardless of the corresponding death of her unborn child.
Participating in the death of another human being tarnishes the soul. Today's abortion ethos of "giving the mother choice" is akin to Nazi Germany's dogma of the 1940's. Hitler believed that he could choose who would live or die in his "final solution to the Jewish problem."
This warped mentality is alive and well today. Case in point is this death view of life by a group of Canadian "doctors."
Check out this incredible story here.
This is a scary anti-God view. No human has the right to decide who lives or dies.
It robs the life given by God of an unborn child, extinguishing whatever potential and accomplishments that child would achieve with their life.
Not only does abortion kill unborn children but it emotionally scars those who have one and who perform this procedure. Yet, abortionists believe that freeing a woman from an unintended pregnancy is a higher choice irregardless of the corresponding death of her unborn child.
Participating in the death of another human being tarnishes the soul. Today's abortion ethos of "giving the mother choice" is akin to Nazi Germany's dogma of the 1940's. Hitler believed that he could choose who would live or die in his "final solution to the Jewish problem."
This warped mentality is alive and well today. Case in point is this death view of life by a group of Canadian "doctors."
Check out this incredible story here.
This is a scary anti-God view. No human has the right to decide who lives or dies.
Tuesday, September 09, 2008
Sacrifice and 911
Sacrifice and 9-11
Most of us can remember where we were on the morning of September 11, 2001. I was driving to a meeting when a work colleague of mine called me and told me to turn on the radio. The news stunned me. Like the Pearl Harbor generation, Americans were dumbfounded that our nation had again been brazenly attacked without warning.
Shortly afterwards, President Bush would declare the war on terror. Seven years have passed since that fateful day. It has been a costly struggle. Thousands of American soldiers, marines, airmen and sailors have either given their lives or have been injured. Their sacrifices have kept our nation safe.
But there is an ongoing spiritual war which embraces humanity and is far more deadly. Ephesians 6:12 teaches that “our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Satan is the ultimate terrorist. His goal: to force spiritual darkness and bondage upon every human.
To win this war requires sacrifice too. Scripture teaches that Christ’s sacrifice has saved us from this spiritual darkness (1 John 2:2). Without it, we are outside of God’s Kingdom. While our national sacrifice is great and mounting, it does not compare to the work of Jesus Christ on the cross. The good news is that sacrifice always births freedom whether it is the war on terror or the great spiritual war of good versus evil.
This year, in light of 9-11, are you willing to accept the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for your spiritual freedom?
Most of us can remember where we were on the morning of September 11, 2001. I was driving to a meeting when a work colleague of mine called me and told me to turn on the radio. The news stunned me. Like the Pearl Harbor generation, Americans were dumbfounded that our nation had again been brazenly attacked without warning.
Shortly afterwards, President Bush would declare the war on terror. Seven years have passed since that fateful day. It has been a costly struggle. Thousands of American soldiers, marines, airmen and sailors have either given their lives or have been injured. Their sacrifices have kept our nation safe.
But there is an ongoing spiritual war which embraces humanity and is far more deadly. Ephesians 6:12 teaches that “our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Satan is the ultimate terrorist. His goal: to force spiritual darkness and bondage upon every human.
To win this war requires sacrifice too. Scripture teaches that Christ’s sacrifice has saved us from this spiritual darkness (1 John 2:2). Without it, we are outside of God’s Kingdom. While our national sacrifice is great and mounting, it does not compare to the work of Jesus Christ on the cross. The good news is that sacrifice always births freedom whether it is the war on terror or the great spiritual war of good versus evil.
This year, in light of 9-11, are you willing to accept the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for your spiritual freedom?
Friday, August 29, 2008
Sex By The Numbers
Here is the sex update from the June 2008 USA Today survey...
-5 million opposite-sex umarried couples live together, up from half-a-million in 1970. Our view:This trend has been building for years. Our divorce culture has spawned a generation of young skepketical adults who are leery of a life-long commitment. This "psudo-marriage" gives them the near benefits of marriage without the commitment. Howedver, nearly 70 percent of co-habitors divorce if they marry.
-10% of American couples are cohabitating while that number is 30% in Western Europe and Canada. There are enough of these couples now to call their relationships "mainstream." Our view: See above. Faith plays a large part in marital formation for many couples. There will be some restraint of cohabitation in America due to our ongoing religious beliefs. Yet, many younger Christians see no problem with it.
-20% fewer marriages were reported in the U.S. in 2005 than in 1995. Our view:This is a disburbing trend. What it means is that more children will be born out of wedlock than to intact two-parent homes. This trends needs to be reversed.
-63% of Americans say that homosexual marriage should be permissible and that the government should not ban it. At the same time, more than 50% of churchgoers believe that gay marriage should be prohibited. Our view:We would take issue with this number since most marriage-definition amendments pass at the state level. However, there is a growing cultural sentiment that homosexuals should have a equal partnership incumbent of the same rights and rewards of marriage.
-55,000 homosexual couples from other states will legally wed in California. Our view: It is likely that the voters of California will repeal this misguided court decision in November. In 2000 more than 60 percent of the California electorate voted for a law defining marriage between one man and one woman. We believe a majority sentiment towwards this position still exists.
-5 million opposite-sex umarried couples live together, up from half-a-million in 1970. Our view:This trend has been building for years. Our divorce culture has spawned a generation of young skepketical adults who are leery of a life-long commitment. This "psudo-marriage" gives them the near benefits of marriage without the commitment. Howedver, nearly 70 percent of co-habitors divorce if they marry.
-10% of American couples are cohabitating while that number is 30% in Western Europe and Canada. There are enough of these couples now to call their relationships "mainstream." Our view: See above. Faith plays a large part in marital formation for many couples. There will be some restraint of cohabitation in America due to our ongoing religious beliefs. Yet, many younger Christians see no problem with it.
-20% fewer marriages were reported in the U.S. in 2005 than in 1995. Our view:This is a disburbing trend. What it means is that more children will be born out of wedlock than to intact two-parent homes. This trends needs to be reversed.
-63% of Americans say that homosexual marriage should be permissible and that the government should not ban it. At the same time, more than 50% of churchgoers believe that gay marriage should be prohibited. Our view:We would take issue with this number since most marriage-definition amendments pass at the state level. However, there is a growing cultural sentiment that homosexuals should have a equal partnership incumbent of the same rights and rewards of marriage.
-55,000 homosexual couples from other states will legally wed in California. Our view: It is likely that the voters of California will repeal this misguided court decision in November. In 2000 more than 60 percent of the California electorate voted for a law defining marriage between one man and one woman. We believe a majority sentiment towwards this position still exists.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
9-year-old boy told he's too good to pitch
This one comes from the "hard to believe file"....
Jericho Scott is nine years old and plays baseball. He possesses a blazing fastball and is so good that local little league officials in New Haven, Connecticut have told him that he cannot pitch anymore.
Here's the story.
Playing sports is about winning and unfortunately losing. Banishing a stand out athlete sends a powerful message that mediocrity is more important than excellence.
Let's hope this call gets over turned.
Jericho Scott is nine years old and plays baseball. He possesses a blazing fastball and is so good that local little league officials in New Haven, Connecticut have told him that he cannot pitch anymore.
Here's the story.
Playing sports is about winning and unfortunately losing. Banishing a stand out athlete sends a powerful message that mediocrity is more important than excellence.
Let's hope this call gets over turned.
The Pelosi Deception
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is at it again.
Now I will cut the esteemed Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives a break as to her intentions and grant her a naviete pass on this one.
Here's what Pelosi said on Sunday's Meet the Press....""doctors of the church" have not been able to define when life begins and that "over the history of the church, this is an issue of controversy."
Really. Nancy Pelosi self-describes herself as "an ardent, practicing Catholic." One would then assume that she would be very knowledgeable about the teachings of her church. Apparently, for whatever reasons, she is not. Now again, I don't want to accuse her of untruth, but only hold her accountable for her words...
The Catholic Church for a millenium has held the view that life begins at conception. Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput added that "Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi is a gifted public servant of strong convictions and many professional skills. Regrettably, knowledge of Catholic history and teaching does not seem to be one of them."
He adds the punchline: "Abortion kills unborn, developing life. Its is always evil, and so are the evasions employed to justify it. Catholics who make excuses for it- whether they're famous or not-fool only themselves and abuse the fidelity of those Catholics who do sincerely seek to follow the Gospel and live their Catholic faith.
Could Pelosi's statement be more about politics than intellectual honesty?
Now I will cut the esteemed Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives a break as to her intentions and grant her a naviete pass on this one.
Here's what Pelosi said on Sunday's Meet the Press....""doctors of the church" have not been able to define when life begins and that "over the history of the church, this is an issue of controversy."
Really. Nancy Pelosi self-describes herself as "an ardent, practicing Catholic." One would then assume that she would be very knowledgeable about the teachings of her church. Apparently, for whatever reasons, she is not. Now again, I don't want to accuse her of untruth, but only hold her accountable for her words...
The Catholic Church for a millenium has held the view that life begins at conception. Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput added that "Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi is a gifted public servant of strong convictions and many professional skills. Regrettably, knowledge of Catholic history and teaching does not seem to be one of them."
He adds the punchline: "Abortion kills unborn, developing life. Its is always evil, and so are the evasions employed to justify it. Catholics who make excuses for it- whether they're famous or not-fool only themselves and abuse the fidelity of those Catholics who do sincerely seek to follow the Gospel and live their Catholic faith.
Could Pelosi's statement be more about politics than intellectual honesty?
Archbishop Chaput Nails the Abortion Issue
Hoorahs again to Denver's Archbishop Charles Chaput and his clairvoyant column on abortion.
With the backdrop of this week's Democratic National Convention looming, Chaput issued a clear and concise statement on life and abortion.
Here it is. You don't want to miss this one.
With the backdrop of this week's Democratic National Convention looming, Chaput issued a clear and concise statement on life and abortion.
Here it is. You don't want to miss this one.
Monday, July 28, 2008
Finding Life in Death
This very powerful. It was written by a man who died last month. Copy and keep this one....
Tony Snow was a television commentator who eventually became President Bush's press secretary. He had several bouts with cancer and he recently lost his battle with the disease. Last October, during the midst of his illness, Tony Snow shared what spiritual lessons he had been learning through his ordeal. Here are Tony Snow's own words:
Blessings arrive in unexpected packages--in my case, cancer. Those of us with potentially fatal diseases--and there are millions in America today--find ourselves in the odd position of coping with our mortality while trying to fathom God's will. Although it would be the height of presumption to declare with confidence "What It All Means," Scripture provides powerful hints and consolations.
The first is that we shouldn't spend too much time trying to answer the "why" questions: Why me? Why must people suffer? Why can't someone else get sick? We can't answer such things, and the questions themselves often are designed more to express our anguish than to solicit an answer.
I don't know why I have cancer, and I don't much care. It is what it is, a plain and indisputable fact. Yet even while staring into a mirror darkly, great and stunning truths begin to take shape. Our maladies define a central feature of our existence: We are fallen. We are imperfect. Our bodies give out.
But despite this--or because of it--God offers the possibility of salvation and grace. We don't know how the narrative of our lives will end, but we get to choose how to use the interval between now and the moment we meet our Creator face-to-face.
Second, we need to get past the anxiety. The mere thought of dying can send adrenaline flooding through your system. A dizzy, unfocused panic seizes you. Your heart thumps; your head swims . You think of nothingness and swoon. You fear partings; you worry about the impact on family & friends. You fidget and get nowhere.
To regain footing, remember that we were born not into death, but into life--and that the journey continues after we have finished our days on this earth. We accept this on faith, but that faith is nourished by a conviction that stirs even within many non believing hearts--an intuition that the gift of life, once given, cannot be taken away. Those who have been stricken enjoy the special privilege of being able to fight with their might, main, and faith to live fully, richly, and exuberantly--no matter how their days may be numbered.
Third, we can open our eyes and hearts. God relishes surprise. We want lives of simple, predictable ease--smooth, even trails as far as the eye can see--but God likes to go off-road. He provokes us with twists and turns. He places us in predicaments that seem to defy our endurance; and comprehension--and yet don't. By His love and grace, we persevere. The challenges that make our hearts leap and stomachs churn invariably strengthen our faith and grant measures of wisdom and joy we would not experience otherwise.
'You Have Been Called'. Picture yourself in a hospital bed. The fog of anesthesia has begun to wear away. A doctor stands at your feet; a loved one holds your hand at the side. "It's cancer," the healer announces.
The natural reaction is to turn to God and ask him to serve as a cosmic Santa. "Dear God, make it all go away. Make everything simpler." But another voice whispers: "You have been called." Your quandary has drawn you closer to God, closer to those you love, closer to the issues that matter--and has dragged into insignificance the banal concerns that occupy our "normal time."
There's another kind of response, although usually short-lived a n inexplicable shudder of excitement, as if a clarifying moment of calamity has swept away everything trivial and tiny, and placed before us the challenge of important questions.
The moment you enter the Valley of the Shadow of Death, things change. You discover that Christianity is not something doughy, passive, pious, and soft. Faith may be the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. But it also draws you into a world shorn of fearful caution. The life of belief teems with thrills, boldness, danger, shocks, reversals, triumphs, and epiphanies. Think of Paul, traipsing though the known world and contemplating trips to what must have seemed the antipodes (Spain), shaking the dust from his sandals, worrying not about the morrow, but only about the moment.
There's nothing wilder than a life of humble virtue--for it is through selflessness and service that God wrings from our bodies and spirits the most we ever cou ld give, the most we ever could offer, and the most we ever could do.
Finally, we can let love change everything. When Jesus was faced with the prospect of crucifixion, he grieved not for himself, but for us. He cried for Jerusalem before entering the holy city. From the Cross, he took on the cumulative burden of human sin and weakness, and begged for forgiveness on our behalf.
We get repeated chances to learn that life is not about us, that we acquire purpose and satisfaction by sharing in God's love for others. Sickness gets us part way there. It reminds us of our limitations and dependence. But it also gives us a chance to serve the healthy. A minister friend of mine observes that people suffering grave afflictions often acquire the faith of two people, while loved ones accept the burden of two peoples' worries and fears.
'Learning How to Live'. Most of us have watched friends as they drifted toward God's arms, not with resignation, but with peace and hope. In so doing, they have taught us not how to die, but how to live. They have emulated Christ by transmitting the power & authority of love.
I sat by my best friend's bedside a few years ago as a wasting cancer took him away. He kept at his table a worn Bible and a 1928 edition of the Book of Common Prayer. A shattering grief disabled his family, many of his old friends, and at least one priest. Here was an humble and very good guy, someone who apologized when he winced with pain because he thought it made his guest uncomfortable. He retained his equanimity and good humor literally until his last conscious moment. "I'm going to try to beat [this cancer]," he told me several months before he died. "But if I don't, I'll see you on the other side."
His gift was to remind everyone around him that even though God doesn't promise us tomorrow, he does promise us eternity--filled with life and love we cannot comprehend--and that one can in the throes of sickness point the rest of us toward timeless truths that will help us weather future storms.
Through such trials, God bids us to choose: Do we believe, or do we not? Will we be bold enough to love, daring enough to serve, humble enough to submit, and strong enough to acknowledge our limitations? Can we surrender our concern in things that don't matter so that we devote our remaining days to things that do?
When our faith flags, he throws reminders in our way. Think of the prayer warriors in our midst. They change things, and those of us who have been on the receiving end of their petitions and intercessions know it. It is hard to describe, but there are times when suddenly the hairs on the back of your neck stand up, and you feel a surge of the Spirit. Somehow you just know: Others have chosen, when talking to the Author of all creation, to lift us up--to speak of us!
This is love of a very special order. But so is the ability to sit back & appreciate the wonder of every created thing. The mere thought of death somehow makes every blessing vivid, every happiness more luminous and intense. We may not know how our contest with sickness will end, but we have felt the ineluctable touch of God.
What is man that Thou art mindful of him? We don't know much, but we know this: No matter where we are, no matter what we do, no matter how bleak or frightening our prospects, each and every one of us who believe, each and every day, lies in the same safe and impregnable place, in the hollow of God's hand.
Tony Snow was a television commentator who eventually became President Bush's press secretary. He had several bouts with cancer and he recently lost his battle with the disease. Last October, during the midst of his illness, Tony Snow shared what spiritual lessons he had been learning through his ordeal. Here are Tony Snow's own words:
Blessings arrive in unexpected packages--in my case, cancer. Those of us with potentially fatal diseases--and there are millions in America today--find ourselves in the odd position of coping with our mortality while trying to fathom God's will. Although it would be the height of presumption to declare with confidence "What It All Means," Scripture provides powerful hints and consolations.
The first is that we shouldn't spend too much time trying to answer the "why" questions: Why me? Why must people suffer? Why can't someone else get sick? We can't answer such things, and the questions themselves often are designed more to express our anguish than to solicit an answer.
I don't know why I have cancer, and I don't much care. It is what it is, a plain and indisputable fact. Yet even while staring into a mirror darkly, great and stunning truths begin to take shape. Our maladies define a central feature of our existence: We are fallen. We are imperfect. Our bodies give out.
But despite this--or because of it--God offers the possibility of salvation and grace. We don't know how the narrative of our lives will end, but we get to choose how to use the interval between now and the moment we meet our Creator face-to-face.
Second, we need to get past the anxiety. The mere thought of dying can send adrenaline flooding through your system. A dizzy, unfocused panic seizes you. Your heart thumps; your head swims . You think of nothingness and swoon. You fear partings; you worry about the impact on family & friends. You fidget and get nowhere.
To regain footing, remember that we were born not into death, but into life--and that the journey continues after we have finished our days on this earth. We accept this on faith, but that faith is nourished by a conviction that stirs even within many non believing hearts--an intuition that the gift of life, once given, cannot be taken away. Those who have been stricken enjoy the special privilege of being able to fight with their might, main, and faith to live fully, richly, and exuberantly--no matter how their days may be numbered.
Third, we can open our eyes and hearts. God relishes surprise. We want lives of simple, predictable ease--smooth, even trails as far as the eye can see--but God likes to go off-road. He provokes us with twists and turns. He places us in predicaments that seem to defy our endurance; and comprehension--and yet don't. By His love and grace, we persevere. The challenges that make our hearts leap and stomachs churn invariably strengthen our faith and grant measures of wisdom and joy we would not experience otherwise.
'You Have Been Called'. Picture yourself in a hospital bed. The fog of anesthesia has begun to wear away. A doctor stands at your feet; a loved one holds your hand at the side. "It's cancer," the healer announces.
The natural reaction is to turn to God and ask him to serve as a cosmic Santa. "Dear God, make it all go away. Make everything simpler." But another voice whispers: "You have been called." Your quandary has drawn you closer to God, closer to those you love, closer to the issues that matter--and has dragged into insignificance the banal concerns that occupy our "normal time."
There's another kind of response, although usually short-lived a n inexplicable shudder of excitement, as if a clarifying moment of calamity has swept away everything trivial and tiny, and placed before us the challenge of important questions.
The moment you enter the Valley of the Shadow of Death, things change. You discover that Christianity is not something doughy, passive, pious, and soft. Faith may be the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. But it also draws you into a world shorn of fearful caution. The life of belief teems with thrills, boldness, danger, shocks, reversals, triumphs, and epiphanies. Think of Paul, traipsing though the known world and contemplating trips to what must have seemed the antipodes (Spain), shaking the dust from his sandals, worrying not about the morrow, but only about the moment.
There's nothing wilder than a life of humble virtue--for it is through selflessness and service that God wrings from our bodies and spirits the most we ever cou ld give, the most we ever could offer, and the most we ever could do.
Finally, we can let love change everything. When Jesus was faced with the prospect of crucifixion, he grieved not for himself, but for us. He cried for Jerusalem before entering the holy city. From the Cross, he took on the cumulative burden of human sin and weakness, and begged for forgiveness on our behalf.
We get repeated chances to learn that life is not about us, that we acquire purpose and satisfaction by sharing in God's love for others. Sickness gets us part way there. It reminds us of our limitations and dependence. But it also gives us a chance to serve the healthy. A minister friend of mine observes that people suffering grave afflictions often acquire the faith of two people, while loved ones accept the burden of two peoples' worries and fears.
'Learning How to Live'. Most of us have watched friends as they drifted toward God's arms, not with resignation, but with peace and hope. In so doing, they have taught us not how to die, but how to live. They have emulated Christ by transmitting the power & authority of love.
I sat by my best friend's bedside a few years ago as a wasting cancer took him away. He kept at his table a worn Bible and a 1928 edition of the Book of Common Prayer. A shattering grief disabled his family, many of his old friends, and at least one priest. Here was an humble and very good guy, someone who apologized when he winced with pain because he thought it made his guest uncomfortable. He retained his equanimity and good humor literally until his last conscious moment. "I'm going to try to beat [this cancer]," he told me several months before he died. "But if I don't, I'll see you on the other side."
His gift was to remind everyone around him that even though God doesn't promise us tomorrow, he does promise us eternity--filled with life and love we cannot comprehend--and that one can in the throes of sickness point the rest of us toward timeless truths that will help us weather future storms.
Through such trials, God bids us to choose: Do we believe, or do we not? Will we be bold enough to love, daring enough to serve, humble enough to submit, and strong enough to acknowledge our limitations? Can we surrender our concern in things that don't matter so that we devote our remaining days to things that do?
When our faith flags, he throws reminders in our way. Think of the prayer warriors in our midst. They change things, and those of us who have been on the receiving end of their petitions and intercessions know it. It is hard to describe, but there are times when suddenly the hairs on the back of your neck stand up, and you feel a surge of the Spirit. Somehow you just know: Others have chosen, when talking to the Author of all creation, to lift us up--to speak of us!
This is love of a very special order. But so is the ability to sit back & appreciate the wonder of every created thing. The mere thought of death somehow makes every blessing vivid, every happiness more luminous and intense. We may not know how our contest with sickness will end, but we have felt the ineluctable touch of God.
What is man that Thou art mindful of him? We don't know much, but we know this: No matter where we are, no matter what we do, no matter how bleak or frightening our prospects, each and every one of us who believe, each and every day, lies in the same safe and impregnable place, in the hollow of God's hand.
Friday, July 25, 2008
The New Purity Tidal Wave
All over our nation, parents and their daughters are taking up the cross of personal purity. Reacting to a teen culture that is in the gutter regarding sexual purity, father-daughter purity balls are sweeping across our country.
Check out this great story and be encouraged!
Check out this great story and be encouraged!
The Latest Batman Flop...
I am not sure whether to laugh or cry about this movie...We are all familiar with the genre of the ongoing Batman saga. Unfortunately, today's movie writers tend to delve into the dark and sublime of the Batman character, portraying him as being just a touch above the criminals he pursues in Gotham City.
The latest installment surely fits this bill.
While some will tout its value as a morality play between good and evil, this is one you and your family need to skip.
Children need to see evil as evil and good as good. This is an adult movie where these differences get blurry.
While Batman retains a certain altruistic fascination by many, this one flops.
Philippians 1:10 tells us "to discern what is best in order to be pure and blameless until the day of Christ."
The latest installment surely fits this bill.
While some will tout its value as a morality play between good and evil, this is one you and your family need to skip.
Children need to see evil as evil and good as good. This is an adult movie where these differences get blurry.
While Batman retains a certain altruistic fascination by many, this one flops.
Philippians 1:10 tells us "to discern what is best in order to be pure and blameless until the day of Christ."
Friday, July 18, 2008
Bad News for the Brits- More Babies Out of Wedlock
This might be a blip on the radar for most but its big news...British media is now reporting that the new D-Day in Britain has arrived- where more babies are born out of wedlock than in marriage.
While some will hail this as a breaktrhough to a whole new world, in reality its a tragedy that will eventually redefine Great Britain.
Americans need to be careful. This virus is already on our shores....
While some will hail this as a breaktrhough to a whole new world, in reality its a tragedy that will eventually redefine Great Britain.
Americans need to be careful. This virus is already on our shores....
Thursday, July 17, 2008
The Righteous Will Live By Faith
“The righteous will live by faith.” Eight of the most important words for believers are found in the Old Testament book of Habakkuk (verse 2:4). This verse seems straight forward and pretty easy to do. But, the idea of trusting God when everything else is going wrong is often tough and counter-intuitive to how most of us think. If anything, our strongest urge may be to grab the wheel of life and start steering. Yet, that conversion of thought is an ongoing and compelling message of Christianity.
In Habakkuk’s era, the Jewish nation was coming to an end. Corruption and religious hypocrisy were at their zenith. God tells the prophet that He would not only bring swift judgment on Israel soon but it would be delivered by the hands of the Babylonians, the renowned cruel and barbaric warriors of that age. Habakkuk was stunned. From his perspective, his people deserved God’s judgment but not to the level that would be inflicted by the Babylonian army. Yet, somewhere within the fabric of his being, Habakkuk finds the answer to the imminent storm of destruction and judgment- “the righteous shall live by faith.”
Life is not storm-less. Most of us will not experience the brutal end of our nation or a terrifying end of the life we know each day. But, there are still major challenges that will come through our lives- illness and death, loss of a job, the rebellion of a child, a failed relationship, etc. Christians have never been immune from suffering, illness, poverty or any of the deprivations of life. For many believers, there seems to be an extra portion of these pestilences at times.
Noted Christian author Francis Schaffer posed the question that we must each answer- how then should we live?
Habakkuk got it right. Will you?
In Habakkuk’s era, the Jewish nation was coming to an end. Corruption and religious hypocrisy were at their zenith. God tells the prophet that He would not only bring swift judgment on Israel soon but it would be delivered by the hands of the Babylonians, the renowned cruel and barbaric warriors of that age. Habakkuk was stunned. From his perspective, his people deserved God’s judgment but not to the level that would be inflicted by the Babylonian army. Yet, somewhere within the fabric of his being, Habakkuk finds the answer to the imminent storm of destruction and judgment- “the righteous shall live by faith.”
Life is not storm-less. Most of us will not experience the brutal end of our nation or a terrifying end of the life we know each day. But, there are still major challenges that will come through our lives- illness and death, loss of a job, the rebellion of a child, a failed relationship, etc. Christians have never been immune from suffering, illness, poverty or any of the deprivations of life. For many believers, there seems to be an extra portion of these pestilences at times.
Noted Christian author Francis Schaffer posed the question that we must each answer- how then should we live?
Habakkuk got it right. Will you?
Monday, July 14, 2008
Unmarried Men A Growing Threat in China
Today's post comes from our good friend Chuck Colson and his Breakpoint commentary. Here is the link to the article....
In late June an angry crowd, estimated at 10,000 people, set fire to a government building and police cars in southwestern China. More than 150 people were injured, and it took 1,500 paramilitary and riot police to restore a semblance of order.
The crowd was protesting the “alleged cover-up of a teenage girl’s rape and murder” by three young men, including the “son of a local politician.”
While news agencies cited the incident as an example of unrest over corruption and injustices, there is another Chinese problem highlighted in this story: “China’s testosterone problem.”
That’s the term the New Republic used to characterize the social problems caused by the male-female imbalance in China. As writer Mara Hvistendahl tells us, China “has the largest gender imbalance in the world . . .” There are 37 million more men than women in China; and “almost 20 percent more newborn boys than girls nationwide.” In some parts of China, there are 60 percent more male children than female!
The imbalance is the product of China’s infamous “one-child policy,” in which the government told villagers, and I quote, “YOU CAN BEAT IT OUT! YOU CAN MAKE IT FALL OUT! YOU CAN ABORT IT! BUT YOU CANNOT GIVE BIRTH TO IT!”
Many villagers complied, but with a twist: They made sure that the “one child” would be a boy, who could earn more than girls could. As a result, a researcher at the Chinese Institute for Social Sciences estimates that 10 percent of Chinese men will be unable to find wives.
Of course, frustrated men will make their presence felt, as Beijing is learning. After the first generation of “one child” boys hit adolescence, China’s juvenile crime rate more than doubled. Chinese officials complained about young men committing crimes “without specific motives, often without forethought.”
Sound familiar? History teaches us that unattached, unmarriageable males are “disproportionately responsible for drug abuse, looting, vandalism, and violent crime.” This was true of “frontier towns,” “immigrant ghettos,” and our own inner-cities. There is no reason to think that China will be any different.
And the worst is yet to come as the imbalance grows larger. Government officials worry about the “hidden threat to social stability” posed by a cohort of “hopeless, volatile men.” Wars have often started, historically, when men tried to find wives elsewhere.
But the best the government can come up with are slogans like, “Boys and Girls are both treasures.” Meanwhile young Chinese men gather in bars where they pay $15 a minute to assault the waiters. Yes, you heard me correctly. Even more ominously, if the customer prefers, the waiter will dress in women’s clothing. No wonder ordinary Chinese are worried for the safety of their daughters!
It is hard to find a better example of the consequences that arise from defying the moral order that God has written into His creation. China thought it could create a harmonious society where every child was wanted; now unwanted men threaten its very stability.
China fears its own sons and worries about its daughters all because it followed a false worldview, ignoring God’s design.
In late June an angry crowd, estimated at 10,000 people, set fire to a government building and police cars in southwestern China. More than 150 people were injured, and it took 1,500 paramilitary and riot police to restore a semblance of order.
The crowd was protesting the “alleged cover-up of a teenage girl’s rape and murder” by three young men, including the “son of a local politician.”
While news agencies cited the incident as an example of unrest over corruption and injustices, there is another Chinese problem highlighted in this story: “China’s testosterone problem.”
That’s the term the New Republic used to characterize the social problems caused by the male-female imbalance in China. As writer Mara Hvistendahl tells us, China “has the largest gender imbalance in the world . . .” There are 37 million more men than women in China; and “almost 20 percent more newborn boys than girls nationwide.” In some parts of China, there are 60 percent more male children than female!
The imbalance is the product of China’s infamous “one-child policy,” in which the government told villagers, and I quote, “YOU CAN BEAT IT OUT! YOU CAN MAKE IT FALL OUT! YOU CAN ABORT IT! BUT YOU CANNOT GIVE BIRTH TO IT!”
Many villagers complied, but with a twist: They made sure that the “one child” would be a boy, who could earn more than girls could. As a result, a researcher at the Chinese Institute for Social Sciences estimates that 10 percent of Chinese men will be unable to find wives.
Of course, frustrated men will make their presence felt, as Beijing is learning. After the first generation of “one child” boys hit adolescence, China’s juvenile crime rate more than doubled. Chinese officials complained about young men committing crimes “without specific motives, often without forethought.”
Sound familiar? History teaches us that unattached, unmarriageable males are “disproportionately responsible for drug abuse, looting, vandalism, and violent crime.” This was true of “frontier towns,” “immigrant ghettos,” and our own inner-cities. There is no reason to think that China will be any different.
And the worst is yet to come as the imbalance grows larger. Government officials worry about the “hidden threat to social stability” posed by a cohort of “hopeless, volatile men.” Wars have often started, historically, when men tried to find wives elsewhere.
But the best the government can come up with are slogans like, “Boys and Girls are both treasures.” Meanwhile young Chinese men gather in bars where they pay $15 a minute to assault the waiters. Yes, you heard me correctly. Even more ominously, if the customer prefers, the waiter will dress in women’s clothing. No wonder ordinary Chinese are worried for the safety of their daughters!
It is hard to find a better example of the consequences that arise from defying the moral order that God has written into His creation. China thought it could create a harmonious society where every child was wanted; now unwanted men threaten its very stability.
China fears its own sons and worries about its daughters all because it followed a false worldview, ignoring God’s design.
Tuesday, July 01, 2008
The Obama's on Homosexual Marriage
They're for it. At least they are today. Here's the link to Michelle Obama's speech to a Gay and Lesbian group...
If elected, Barack Obama and his legislative cronies and judges could overturn 3,000 years of human law and history on marriage. I am not trying to scare anyone, but marriage as a the human icon of relationships would be changed forever.
In a blog last week, I mentioned what a vote for Obama would mean. One of those prognostications would be the advent of (and your acceptance of)gay marriage nation wide. Michelle Obama's statements confirm this troubling notion.
If elected, Barack Obama and his legislative cronies and judges could overturn 3,000 years of human law and history on marriage. I am not trying to scare anyone, but marriage as a the human icon of relationships would be changed forever.
In a blog last week, I mentioned what a vote for Obama would mean. One of those prognostications would be the advent of (and your acceptance of)gay marriage nation wide. Michelle Obama's statements confirm this troubling notion.
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