government

Lip Service: In Name Only

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rhino-trumpI guess it’s somewhat fitting that the date of the Iowa caucus is just a few weeks ahead of Valentine’s Day.  Both are love-hate events, and the language of the participants is characterized by loving phrases of praise or acerbic accusations that are as sharp as Cupid’s arrows.

When lovers and politicians just talk the talk, but they don’t walk the walk, they’re labeled as an in-name-only person. This type of false sincerity was the focus of John’s admonishment to young Christians (I John 3:18):

  • Let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth. ~NKJV
  • Don’t just talk about love as an idea or a theory. Make it your true way of life, and live in the pattern of gracious love. ~The Voice
  • Let us not love [merely in theory] with word or with tongue [giving lip service to compassion], but in action and in truth [in practice and in sincerity, because practical acts of love are more than words]. ~Amplified

Donald Trump and a few others vying for the office of President have been accused of being a RINO or a Republican In Name Only.  Individuals like these paint themselves in the colors of the Republican Party and sport a freshly inked GOP tattoo, but they don’t walk the party line.

On Valentine’s Day, a spurned loved may be accused of being a LINO or a Lover In Name Only.  The offender can try to persuade the offended with a box of chocolates and a dozen red roses, but the scent of the flowers can’t undo the smell of betrayal.

My concern is not so much that you might be a RINO or a Lino, but whether or not you are a CINO—Christian In Name Only.  Are you a lip-service –Christian, or are you sincere in your commitment to Him?  As you think about this question, you might want to examine your love-lines and wrinkles in the mirror of John 13:34-35:

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.

North Korea and a Wee Little Man

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NKOREA-US-POLITICS-RODMAN-BASKETBALL

Kim Jong-un, North Korea’s Supreme leader towered over his father who was just a little over 5 feet tall; however, he appears to be a wee little man when he stands beside his idol Dennis Rodman.  Even though he’s small in stature, Kim caught the world’s attention earlier this week when there was an earthquake near a nuclear test site.

While the focus of the world was on the terrorism of Iran and the mindless madness of the Middle East, North Korea tested a hydrogen bomb under the cloak of darkness.  These claims have been met with suspicion from the rest of world because the seismic wave left by the explosion was smaller than what occurs when a real thermonuclear weapon is detonated.

The narcissistic Supreme Leader of North Korea has a heart that’s as shriveled as his ego is big. He could learn an essential lesson by considering the example of  Zacchaeus (Luke 19), the wee little man who encountered the King of kings and Lord of lords.

As a tax collector, Zacchaeus had some authority, and He was rather rich.  Like Kim Jong-un, Zacchaeus had run rough shod over people, and he had enriched himself at their expense.

The life of this miserable tax collector began to change when he realized something: The wealth of the world can fill your pockets, but it will leave your heart empty.  When he began to examine the life of Jesus, the embezzling heart of Zacchaeus was embellished by the love of God.

The proof of his new found faith was seen in his statement to Jesus: “I’ll give half of my possessions to the poor, Lord! And if I have extorted anything from anyone, I’ll pay back four times as much!”

Jesus joyfully responded: “Today salvation has come to this house, because he too is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save the lost.”

Even though Zacchaeus was a wee little man in the eyes of his peers, he became a prized possession in the eyes and heart of God.  Hopefully, Kim Jong-un will learn this lesson someday.

 

In The Cross Hairs: Dodging Bullets

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Sniper3SNIPER ALERT!  You have a bulls eye painted on your heart, and your faith is the target.  The Freedom from Religion Foundation (FFRF) is an atheistic and anti-god organization that has launched a vicious assault designed to silence any expression of faith in the public square.

FFRF is more evangelistic in their efforts to remove God than many Christians are in sharing their faith.  They encourage their membership to contact any business or magazine that casts religion in a favorable light.

Even the Saturday Evening Post and AARP have felt the wrath of FFRF:

  • AARP published an article: “The Paradox of Prayer: A Pilgrimage” and FFRF admonished its membership to contact AARP to express their displeasure.
  • The cover story in the most recent addition of the Saturday Evening Post focuses on the power of prayer.  FFRF has mocked the article and it’s asking its members to write a letter of protest to the editor.

When FFRF co-president Annie Laurie Gaylor went to Northern Illinois University to give a speech, she stayed at the Holmes Student Center Hotel.   When she found a copy of the Bible in her room she was angered and shocked.

Poor little Annie found the presence of the Bible to be obnoxious, inappropriate and unconstitutional since it was made available in state-run lodging.  She made the assertion that the Bible was proselytizing her in  the privacy of her bedroom.

Poor little Annie is an orphan-maker:   She is attempting to get Bibles banned from public hotel rooms.

The actions of the FFRF have caught the attention of the American Center for Law and Justice, and it’s speaking out for the rich Christian heritage of the USA:  “We’ve been defending constitutionally protected religious speech at the Supreme Court for decades. Now, we’re sending these universities a critical legal letter to protect the Bible.”

You can help protect your Christian liberties by signing a petition here.

The actions of FFRF stand in stark contrast to the sentiment of John Adams, our second President:  “We have no government armed with power capable of contending with human passions unbridled by morality and religion . . . Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”

It’s time to stand up and speak out before your free speech becomes a crime.

Chicago: City of Scapegoats

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EmanuelThe headline news coming out of Chicago can be summarized in three words that begin with the letter “M”—Murder, Mobs, and the Mayor.

To refresh your memory, Jason Van Dyke is facing first-degree murder charges for shooting 17 year old Laquan McDonald 16 times.  While I don’t know all the facts surrounding this case, it does appear that Van Dyke should be prosecuted.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel asked Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy to step down because the “trust and the leadership of the department have been shaken and eroded.”  If Emmanuel thinks throwing the police superintendent under the bus is a good example of leadership, he’s delusional.

In reality, Mayor Emanuel has played the scapegoat card, and he has sacrificed McCarthy to win public approval and save his own hide.

The scapegoat analogy finds its roots in an Old Testament practice recorded n Leviticus 16:22:  “The goat shall bear all their iniquities on itself to a remote area, and he shall let the goat go free in the wilderness (ESV).”

The scapegoat of Leviticus symbolized what Jesus would do thousands of years later: He would suffer for our sins on the cross and by taking them away, His death would free us from the guilt of sin.

The story of Leviticus involved the High Priest of Israel and the focus was on forgiveness. The story of Chicago involves a politician and his low brow, pass-the-buck manipulating shenanigans.  If a person is truly known by his works, is easy to recognize the old goat in this story.

Thanksgiving: Thanks to a Special Person

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When I posted  this call to  lift our law  enforcement officers  up in prayer, I had no idea that another tragedy would so quickly happen.  I was saddened by the death of  Police  Officer  Garrett Swasey, of the  Colorado  Springs  Police  Department, Colorado who died in the line of duty yesterday.  Please pray for his family, his fellow officers, and the those who were held hostage.

SwaseyToday is Thanksgiving, so I want to say thanks to a special person:  “Hey LEO, I’m thankful for you.”

I realize you might be asking:  “LEO? LEO who?”

Well, it’s not my Uncle Leo.  That fun loving, nephew-teasing, do-whatever-I-can-do-to-help-you fireman, left this world for a better place in 1990. While I am thankful for Uncle Leo, I want to go public, and say, “I’m thankful for a group of people called LEO.”

The character of our Law Enforcement Officers is under attack. This assault is Post Hoc, Ergo Propter Hoc.  It’s poor logic that makes the mistake of claiming that one thing caused another just because it happened first.

Just because a rooster crows and then the sun rises, doesn’t mean that the sun rises because a rooster crows.  Too many people are making the same logical assumption.  Because one white LEO shoots a black person, does not mean that all white Law Enforcement Officers will shoot all black people.

Are there some bad apples in their ranks?  Most definitely, but the rogue are few in number.  Many of these men and women are college educated individuals who are punched, kicked, spat on, and cussed out as a part of their daily routine.  They go to work dressed in bullet proof vests, because they are willing to risk their lives to protect yours.

Are you aware that during the past 10 years, a total of 1,466 law enforcement officers died in the line of duty?  This is an average of one death every 60 hours or 146 per year. In 2014, there were 117 law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty.  During this same time period, there have been 58,930 assaults against law enforcement officers each year, resulting in 15,404 injuries.

Yes, I’m thankful for LEO:

  • I’m thankful for the more than 900,000 sworn law enforcement officers now serving in the United States.
  • I’m thankful for each one of the 20,538 individuals who made the ultimate sacrifice to serve and to protect, and whose names are engraved on the walls of the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial.
  • I’m thankful that while I’m at home in the warmth of my house and feasting on a plate of food, that LEO is at work. Whether it is in Chicago, NYC, Wichita, or El Dorado, I’m thankful for you.

If you’re thankful for LEO, “I urge that requests, prayers, intercessions, and thanks be offered on behalf of all people, even for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.  Such prayer for all is good and welcomed before God our Savior.”                                                                                                                                       ~2 Timothy 2:1-3

The Year of the Naked Christmas

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xmasI’m growing weary of the societal onslaught designed to strip Christmas of its dignity and clothe it in the seams of secularization.   One of the latest examples is the action of the “Executive Leadership Team” at the Salem VA Medical Center.  These mindless minions have banned Christmas trees, Christmas celebrations, and Christian speech, including the traditional Season’s Greeting of “Merry Christmas.”

Should the traditional Season’s Greeting be restricted to the “Ho, Ho, Ho,” of Santa Claus or should two letters be added to “Ho” and the greeting be: “Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty” as we celebrate the gift of God’s Son?

Is Christmas to be the inflated plastic toys that line the shelves of stores like Home Depot who want your money, but deny the message of Christmas?  Is it to be a way for stores to profit while they reject The Prophet who is The Way, The Truth, and The Life (John 14:6)?

I realize that Thanksgiving is this week and Christmas is still a month away, but I’ve come to loathe the commercialization of Christmas.  When we forget the rich Christian history of this holy day, it becomes a remnant of empty boxes and crumpled wrapping paper.

The hope-filled Spirit of Christmas has transformed lives throughout the history of mankind.  One such incident is the World War I story involving Charles Brewer, a 19-year-old British lieutenant.

On Christmas Eve of 1914, Brewer and other soldiers of the Bedfordshire Regiment of the 2nd Battalion were shivering in a trench when they faintly heard the sound of singing coming from the trenches of the German soldiers.  After a moment, Brewer recognized the song was the familiar Christmas carol, “Silent Night.”  When the Germans were finished singing “Stille Nacht,” Brewer and other soldiers began to cheer, and they sang the English version of the song.

According to history.com, “When dawn broke on Christmas morning, something even more remarkable happened. In sporadic pockets along the 500-mile Western Front, unarmed German and Allied soldiers tentatively emerged from the trenches and cautiously crossed no-man’s-land—the killing fields between the trenches littered with frozen corpses, eviscerated trees and deep craters—to wish each other a Merry Christmas. Political leaders had ignored the call of Pope Benedict XV to cease fighting around Christmas, but soldiers in the trenches decided to stage their own unofficial, spontaneous armistices anyway.”

I think it’s time for the government to end this sterilization program and let our Veterans have their Christmas trees and its time merchants  begin  focusing less on the jingle bells of their cash registers and more on the message of Silent Night.

Independence Day

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july-4th-independence-day-usa-flag-map-abstract-holidaySince tomorrow is the 4th of July and the day that we celebrate our independence, I thought I would share a few statistics with you:

  • 87%of American households own an outdoor grill, and moat of those will be used over this weekend.
  • 150 million hotdog will be eaten which is enough to stretch from Washington D.C. to Los Angles more than 5 times
  • 700 million pounds of chickens has been purchased to be cooked and eaten,
  • 190 million pounds of red meat or pork will be cooked.
  • 63% of Americans will attend a fireworks display and 66% will have an American flag on display.
  • 80% of Americans will go to a picnic or attend a barbeque.
  • According the Nathan’s Famous Hotdogs, the record for eating the most hotdogs in 10 minutes is 64….including the buns.
  • Macy’s will light up the skyline in New York City when more than 40,000 shells are exploded when 12,000 pounds of black powder is ignited. Every second approximately 1,000 of the shells are launched with some of them travelling a thousand feet into the sky.

As you celebrate on July 4th, remember the sacrifices of our forefathers who, through personal sacrifice, purchased the freedoms we enjoy.  As I write this, I think of a statement made by President Ronald Reagan:

George Washington believed that religion, morality, and brotherhood were the pillars of society. He said you couldn’t have morality without religion. And yet today we’re told that to protect the first amendment, we must expel God, the source of all knowledge, from our children’s classrooms. Well, pardon me, but the first amendment was not written to protect the American people from religion; the first amendment was written to protect the American people from government tyranny.

When you see the fireworks displays in the night sky, remember that Jesus is the Light of the world, and pray that God will bless the USA.