A Quote For Today

Is it the role of the church to shape the culture or to merely reflect it?... Christians need to take a break from worshiping this culture and the idols it produces. We need to take a closer look at the man in the mirror.

- Mike Adams from his article The Advocate Of The Episcopal Church

I Begin To Understand...

Let us look forward to the time when we can take the flag of our country and nail it below the Cross, and there let it wave as it waved in the olden times, and let us gather around it and inscribe for our motto: ‘Liberty and Union, one and inseparable, now and forever,’ and exclaim: Christ first, our country next!

- President Andrew Johnson

I think I begin to comprehend how it is possible that folks wanted to impeach this guy. If he wrote these words he was probably too radical for the powers that be. Too bad that I don't know of any people in our government that feel the same way about it today.

Why Not? Have A Couple More...

It would be dreadful to suffer this fierceness and wrath of Almighty God one second; but you must suffer it for all of eternity. There will be no end to this extreme horrible misery. When you look forward, you shall see a long forever, a boundless duration before you, which will swallow up your thoughts, and amaze your soul; and you will absolutely despair of ever having any deliverance, any end, any mitigation, any rest at all. You will know certainly that you must wear out long ages, millions of millions of ages in wrestling and conflicting with this almighty merciless vengeance; and then when you have so done, when so many ages have actually been spent by you in this manner, you will know that all is but a point to what remains.

- Jonathan Edwards "Sinners In The Hands Of An Angry God" (emphasis mine)

This would be BAD - bad on the scale of crossing the streams in Ghostbusters. In fact, that really doesn't even touch on how bad that would be. It will happen to some because they foolishly reject the provision that Jesus has made for them and their sin. Do not let that happen to you.

A much better option follows...

It would be blissful to experience this fierceness of love and pleasure of Almighty God one second; but you shall delight in it for all of eternity. There will be no end to this extreme glorious ecstasy. When you look forward, you shall see a long forever, a boundless duration before you, which will swallow up your thoughts, and amaze your soul; and you will be absolutely astounded by the certainty that there shall be no end, no mitigation, no cessation at all. You will know certainly that you must expend long ages, millions of millions of ages in absorbing and basking in this almighty limitless adoration; and then when you have so done, when so many ages have actually been spent by you in this manner, you will know that all is but a point to what remains.

- Jonathan Eller from his essay "Sinners In The Hands Of An Angry God"

This would be GOOD. In fact, good really doesn't even come close to describing what this will be like. May I suggest this path? It will probably be more difficult on this side of death, but the trials faced are always for our good. And I can assure you that the final outcome will be far FAR FAR better.

Quote Of The Day

"Michael Squints Palledorous walked a little taller that day. And we had to tip our hats to him. He was lucky she hadn't beat the CRAP out of him. We wouldn't have blamed her. What he'd done was sneaky, rotten, and low... and cool.
Not another one among us would have ever in a million years even for a million dollars have the guts to put the moves on the lifeguard. He did. He had kissed a woman. And he had kissed her long and good. We got banned from the pool forever that day. But every time we walked by after that, the lifeguard looked down from her tower, right over at Squints, and smiled. "


One of my favorite movies of all time...

Another Milestone

I recall one morning -- early on in our unemployment, the Lord spoke, "Isn't it interesting that you will 'trust' Me with your eternity, but you struggle to believe I will take care of you in the 'now'." Ouch! Yes, that hurt when He said it. But it was corrective truth! The irony is that many of His children are in exactly this place. His desire is to bring the reality of our 'trust' to the present such that it is no longer ethereal --- but walked out in the physical -- right here, right now.

- Deborah from her post His Hold on the blog Joy In The Morning

This was a timely quote from a friend's blog that I read today. And when I was getting ready to post it I realized that I had hit a milestone of sorts. My last post was my 777th post on this blog. I don't suppose that is anything too major, but it is a number associated with the Lord quite often, and I thought it worthy of mention. I suppose that there will be many more posts before I am finished with this blog, but it is nice to mark the ones that seem significant along the way. Actually, it is hard to imagine that I have hit the publish button that many times.

There will be some more posting here soon. I haven't had much to write about lately. I've still been trying to get myself back into the disciplines and routines that I had established before I left for Japan. We're getting closer, but still not quite there yet. And I am trying really hard to not gripe and complain about the administration incessantly here. I really am trying hard to be nice. Politics makes me mean.

Another Good Quote From Sowell

The same politicians who have been talking about a need for "affordable housing" for years are now suddenly alarmed that home prices are falling. How can housing become more affordable unless prices fall?

The political meaning of "affordable housing" is housing that is made more affordable by politicians intervening to create government subsidies, rent control or other gimmicks for which politicians can take credit.

Affordable housing produced by market forces provides no benefit to politicians and has no attraction for them.

Study after study, not only here but in other countries, show that the most affordable housing is where there has been the least government interference with the market-- contrary to rhetoric.

- Thomas Sowell from his article Subsidizing Bad Decisions

Quote Of The Day

You can't help but wonder if Democrats ever pay taxes. It seems from the headlines that the way it works is that Democrats levy taxes but only Republicans have to pay them. (Republicans and proles.... Yes, it would seem that the Democrats are applying Matthew 17:24-27 to themselves. Too bad this question wasn't above their pay grade.)

For a president who said he was going to preside over the most ethical administration in history, Barack Obama has shown an astounding talent of being able to find appointees who mistakenly manage to forget to pay their taxes. (Our good President couldn't even carry his predecessor's shoes in this department, let alone fill them or exceed them.) ...

When a Democrat stands before a judge after straying from the straight and narrow you can expect that he will admit to having made a mistake and, what the heck, everybody makes mistakes. That's why they put erasers on pencils. (The real travesty is that the poor, misunderstood, Democrat was actually called on the carpet for doing so.)

- Michael Reagan from his article When Crimes Become Mistakes
(Parenthetical comments all mine.)

Bravo, Michael Reagan! These crooks think that they are getting away with this stuff, but a reckoning is coming... a reckoning is coming.

A Presidential Quote

"Through Jesus Christ the world will yet be a better and a fairer place. This faith sustains us today as it has sustained mankind for centuries past. This is why the Christmas story, with the bright stars shining and the angels singing, moves us to wonder and stirs our hearts to praise. Now, my fellow countrymen, I wish for all of you a Christmas filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit, and many years of future happiness with the peace of God reigning upon this earth."

—Harry S. Truman, December 24, 1952

And if every person who calls himself a Christian would do as Jesus did, the world would be so improved that we would no longer recognize it. God help us to do so.

One From The Oogedy-Boogedy Crowd

...I will grant you social conservatism can be a loser if it comes across as preachy, bossy, or overdone. Moreover, there is a weird discomfort some people have about Christians who are serious about their faith getting interested in government. However, Christians had better be interested in the government because the government is certainly interested in them. It's interested in shaping the minds of their children, it's interested in shaping the culture around them, and it's interested in shaping who gets to be married in their church. If people of faith are willing to help the GOP in return for having their interests protected in Washington, the Republican Party would be extraordinarily foolish to turn them away.

- John Hawkins

The quote above was in response to Kathleen Parker's denigration of Evangelical Republican voters. Understandably her statement has apparently been the subject of a mild uproar. There were quite a few columns in response to it today. I heard about it originally in David Limbaugh's column.

Apparently in the aftermath of the GOP's defeat on November 4 the finger pointing has gotten around to us "values-voters." Many are suggesting that the GOP is doomed until it sheds its "archaic" attachment to the protection of the unborn, the defense of marriage, etc.

Let this "oogedy-boogedy" member of the GOP go on record to say that if the party ever abandons these issues it can stop counting on my vote. The likelihood of my voting straight ticket for the Republicans will be nil. Granted, the likelihood that I'll vote straight ticket for the Democrats is even less than that, but there will be no more blank check. I will vote for each individual and will be paying attention to these issues.

I have no illusions that the political system in America will ever be able to accomplish the restoration of the values that our country has drifted so far away from, but I'll be hanged before I'll help it drift further.

Quote Of The Day

I find that politicians as a class are up to no good. Sometimes they accidentally do the right thing.

- Robert Novak

This was from a really interesting interview with the columnist. It is worth a read.

A Quote

A non-normative marriage, once allowed, undermines the normative kind just by inference. If the norm no longer is the lifelong union of a man and a woman, we may count on the imaginative faculties of those most concerned to come up with new understandings. I don't think the proponents of gay marriage have in mind the extension of the matter to polygamy, but when you think it over, why not? It's what some people want. Shouldn't they have what they want? To deny a 21st century American his wishes (unless he's some Christian rightist or other) would be cruel and hateful.

- Bill Murchison from his article "Calling Things By Their Right Names"

Interesting article worth a read. I find it ironic that he uses polygamy as the next logical progression should marriage be re-defined to include homosexual unions. There is far greater biblical support for polygamy than there is for "homosexual marriage." Indeed, I think polygamy is the least of our concerns should the homosexuals have their way.

Clever

"people who hate others because of their race, religion or national origin, are just plain lazy. After all, once you get to really know people, there are always better reasons than that for despising them."

- Burt Prelutsky

I didn't really like the article that much, but I thought this statement was clever.

A Quote For Today

...one thing that can be said with clarity and consistency: the Catholic Church has been a beacon in leading the fight against the destruction of the unborn. Say what you will, but few religious faiths and organizations have had the rock-solid conviction to fight for unborn babies like the Catholic Church has had. And judging by the actions of this one priest in South Carolina, they're just getting started.

I pray that more priests, ministers, and rabbis follow suit.

How can a spiritual leader stand at the pulpit every week and ignore the slaughter of millions of innocents? Why would a pastor be inclined to defend an individual, politician or otherwise, who could support partial-birth abortion or the destruction of the life of an unborn baby at any stage?

- Mike Gallagher

Thank God for the Catholic church's devotion to this issue.

John McCain

Many of you know that I was not a big fan of John McCain at the outset of the campaigning season, but I have to say that my opinion of him has been greatly boosted after watching him through the campaign. I have to admit that I misjudged him. John McCain is a true patriot and servant of our nation. I wish we had 99 others just like him in the Senate... and one in the White House.

I was especially proud of his concession speech that ended the Presidential race of 2008. His words and poise showed great character, vision, and devotion to our nation. In case you didn't get the chance to hear what he said, I have provided the text below.

John McCain is a fine man. I wish that I could have called him my President, but that was not to be.

I dare say that it was necessary for the election to end the way it did if real change is to come to our nation. Had John McCain won the Presidency I believe that the trials that are coming our way would have been postponed. The Congress (both Republicans and Democrats) would have done everything in their power to resist the reform that he wanted to bring to Washington. He would have been a very frustrated man because as surely as I breathe as I am writing this there would have been no change.

The people would have remained as they are or gotten worse.

As things are now, I believe that the trials to come will purify our nation and cause a real change in the place that matters most: the hearts of the people of this nation. As John Adams put it:

"We have no government armed with power capable of contending with human passions unbridled by morality and religion. Avarice, ambition, revenge, or gallantry, would break the strongest cords of our Constitution as a whale goes through a net. Our Constitution was made only for a religious and moral people. It is wholly inadequate for the government of any other. "

So true. Our fallen nature sees to that.

Senator McCain, my hat is off to you. Thank you for your service to our country. I pray that you will still be in office to see the changes that you have so earnestly desired to see.

The Text Of John McCain's Concession Speech For the 2008 Presidential Election

JOHN MCCAIN: Thank you. Thank you, my friends. Thank you for coming here on this beautiful Arizona evening.

(APPLAUSE)

My friends, we have -- we have come to the end of a long journey. The American people have spoken, and they have spoken clearly.

A little while ago, I had the honor of calling Senator Barack Obama to congratulate him.

(BOOING)

Please.

To congratulate him on being elected the next president of the country that we both love.

In a contest as long and difficult as this campaign has been, his success alone commands my respect for his ability and perseverance. But that he managed to do so by inspiring the hopes of so many millions of Americans who had once wrongly believed that they had little at stake or little influence in the election of an American president is something I deeply admire and commend him for achieving.

This is an historic election, and I recognize the special significance it has for African-Americans and for the special pride that must be theirs tonight.

I've always believed that America offers opportunities to all who have the industry and will to seize it. Senator Obama believes that, too.

But we both recognize that, though we have come a long way from the old injustices that once stained our nation's reputation and denied some Americans the full blessings of American citizenship, the memory of them still had the power to wound.

A century ago, President Theodore Roosevelt's invitation of Booker T. Washington to dine at the White House was taken as an outrage in many quarters.

America today is a world away from the cruel and frightful bigotry of that time. There is no better evidence of this than the election of an African-American to the presidency of the United States.

Let there be no reason now...

(APPLAUSE)

Let there be no reason now for any American to fail to cherish their citizenship in this, the greatest nation on Earth.

(APPLAUSE)

Senator Obama has achieved a great thing for himself and for his country. I applaud him for it, and offer him my sincere sympathy that his beloved grandmother did not live to see this day. Though our faith assures us she is at rest in the presence of her creator and so very proud of the good man she helped raise.

Senator Obama and I have had and argued our differences, and he has prevailed. No doubt many of those differences remain.

These are difficult times for our country. And I pledge to him tonight to do all in my power to help him lead us through the many challenges we face.

I urge all Americans...

(APPLAUSE)

I urge all Americans who supported me to join me in not just congratulating him, but offering our next president our good will and earnest effort to find ways to come together to find the necessary compromises to bridge our differences and help restore our prosperity, defend our security in a dangerous world, and leave our children and grandchildren a stronger, better country than we inherited.

Whatever our differences, we are fellow Americans. And please believe me when I say no association has ever meant more to me than that.

(APPLAUSE)

It is natural. It's natural, tonight, to feel some disappointment. But tomorrow, we must move beyond it and work together to get our country moving again.

AUDIENCE MEMBER: (OFF-MIKE)

We fought -- we fought as hard as we could. And though we feel short, the failure is mine, not yours.

AUDIENCE: No!

MCCAIN: I am so...

AUDIENCE: (CHANTING)

MCCAIN: I am so deeply grateful to all of you for the great honor of your support and for all you have done for me. I wish the outcome had been different, my friends.

AUDIENCE MEMBER: We do, too (OFF-MIKE)

MCCAIN: The road was a difficult one from the outset, but your support and friendship never wavered. I cannot adequately express how deeply indebted I am to you.

I'm especially grateful to my wife, Cindy, my children, my dear mother...

(APPLAUSE)

... my dear mother and all my family, and to the many old and dear friends who have stood by my side through the many ups and downs of this long campaign.

I have always been a fortunate man, and never more so for the love and encouragement you have given me.

You know, campaigns are often harder on a candidate's family than on the candidate, and that's been true in this campaign.

All I can offer in compensation is my love and gratitude and the promise of more peaceful years ahead.

I am also -- I am also, of course, very thankful to Governor Sarah Palin, one of the best campaigners I've ever seen...

(APPLAUSE)

... one of the best campaigners I have ever seen, and an impressive new voice in our party for reform and the principles that have always been our greatest strength...

(APPLAUSE)

... her husband Todd and their five beautiful children...

(APPLAUSE)

... for their tireless dedication to our cause, and the courage and grace they showed in the rough and tumble of a presidential campaign.

We can all look forward with great interest to her future service to Alaska, the Republican Party and our country.

(APPLAUSE)

To all my campaign comrades, from Rick Davis and Steve Schmidt and Mark Salter, to every last volunteer who fought so hard and valiantly, month after month, in what at times seemed to be the most challenged campaign in modern times, thank you so much. A lost election will never mean more to me than the privilege of your faith and friendship.

I don't know -- I don't know what more we could have done to try to win this election. I'll leave that to others to determine. Every candidate makes mistakes, and I'm sure I made my share of them. But I won't spend a moment of the future regretting what might have been.

This campaign was and will remain the great honor of my life, and my heart is filled with nothing but gratitude for the experience and to the American people for giving me a fair hearing before deciding that Senator Obama and my old friend Senator Joe Biden should have the honor of leading us for the next four years.

(BOOING)

Please. Please.

I would not -- I would not be an American worthy of the name should I regret a fate that has allowed me the extraordinary privilege of serving this country for a half a century.

half a century.

Today, I was a candidate for the highest office in the country I love so much. And tonight, I remain her servant. That is blessing enough for anyone, and I thank the people of Arizona for it.

(APPLAUSE)

AUDIENCE: USA. USA. USA. USA.

Tonight -- tonight, more than any night, I hold in my heart nothing but love for this country and for all its citizens, whether they supported me or Senator Obama -- whether they supported me or Senator Obama.

I wish Godspeed to the man who was my former opponent and will be my president. And I call on all Americans, as I have often in this campaign, to not despair of our present difficulties, but to believe, always, in the promise and greatness of America, because nothing is inevitable here.

Americans never quit. We never surrender.

(APPLAUSE)

We never hide from history. We make history.

Thank you, and God bless you, and God bless America. Thank you all very much.

Scripture For Today

Psalm 91

1 Those who live in the shelter of the Most High
will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 This I declare about the Lord:
He alone is my refuge, my place of safety;
he is my God, and I trust him.
3 For he will rescue you from every trap
and protect you from deadly disease.
4 He will cover you with his feathers.
He will shelter you with his wings.
His faithful promises are your armor and protection.
5 Do not be afraid of the terrors of the night,
nor the arrow that flies in the day.
6 Do not dread the disease that stalks in darkness,
nor the disaster that strikes at midday.
7 Though a thousand fall at your side,
though ten thousand are dying around you,
these evils will not touch you.
8 Just open your eyes,
and see how the wicked are punished.

9 If you make the Lord your refuge,
if you make the Most High your shelter,
10 no evil will conquer you;
no plague will come near your home.
11 For he will order his angels
to protect you wherever you go.
12 They will hold you up with their hands
so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone.
13 You will trample upon lions and cobras;
you will crush fierce lions and serpents under your feet!

14 The Lord says, “I will rescue those who love me.
I will protect those who trust in my name.
15 When they call on me, I will answer;
I will be with them in trouble.
I will rescue and honor them.
16 I will reward them with a long life
and give them my salvation.”

Nature's Cathederal

Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious saying, "What shall we eat?" or "What shall we drink?" or "What shall we wear?" For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

- Jesus of Nazareth

One More

Worship should be reserved for Sunday mornings, not Election Day.

- Cal Thomas

Interesting Quote

I read this today in an editorial by Brian Fitzpatrick:

Evangelical theology teaches that a person is saved based not on how he votes, or any other action, but on whether he places his trust in Jesus’s sacrifice to pay the price for his sins. Trust Christ today and you’re “saved” today. Therefore, salvation is not so much a future event as a present possession. Once people are “saved,” however, they undergo a spiritual transformation that affects the way they think, behave, and vote.

Exactly. This is why I am astounded when people who claim to have experienced such a spiritual transformation can enthusiastically support any candidate who is in favor of abortion, infanticide, or the redefinition of marriage. I am similarly shocked that anyone with this claim can support any of these policies.

The Bible has much to say about God's standard of right and wrong. It talks about the things that God hates. It talks about the way that He created things to be. It talks about God's nature and what He is like.

It is interesting that God through the Bible does not explicitly deal with these issues. However, He does give us some very strong principles that logically bring us to certain conclusions.

God shows us many examples of marriage - including the very first one. He is very explicit about the sexual relationships that He endorses and condemns. And none of these boundaries are ever revoked in the Bible.

Similarly, it is very clear from the scriptures that God is intimately involved in life even from the womb. It is also clear from the Bible that God hates those who harm children, the helpless, and the innocent.

So I have a real disconnect when someone who claims to be saved can support either of these issues. I have read through the Bible many times, and I can only think of one very weak argument that would support abortion and none that support the redefinition of marriage.

The only way that I can conceive that a person could logically come to the conclusion that these things are alright would be for them to be operating from a different base of moral authority than the Bible. If the Bible is the ultimate authority for morality, I don't see any way to justify these things. Anyone is welcome to try to convince me otherwise. (But I can assure you that if you aren't using a holistic view of scripture you will fail.)

Good Point

Then they (the liberal establishment) attacked her (Sarah Palin's) daughter, who actually is pregnant now, for being unmarried. When liberals start acting like they're opposed to pre-marital sex and mothers having careers, you know McCain's vice presidential choice has knocked them back on their heels.

- Ann Coulter

Funny Quote

"She's like a moose going after a cabbage."
- Lu Sackett (70-year-old resident of Wasilla, Alaska, in response to Sarah Palin's speech before the Republican National Convention last night.)