Miss California Dilemma

I sat back and watched how Hollywood has castigated Miss California for standing up for what she believed in. I have to admit I fall on her side when it comes to marriage and I have even written about the subject on my blog. We all find out what we really stand for when challenged like Carrie Prejean. The left will always fight for your right to say and do as you please as long as you agree with them on a particular subject. They do have the right to say as they please but so does Carrie Prejean. Carrie certainly proved what she was made of when she stood before a national audience and answered with her convictions knowing it would cost her dearly in the eyes of Hollywood. She had an eternal view that I hope all of us will have when we are challenged. I am a firm believer we are getting daily closer to our faith being challenged like never before. Let's prepare now and decide what we will do when our faith is questioned.

Late Update: I am sure you have read about the pictures that are now coming out of Ms. Prejean. This is clearly is a tactic to water down her message on marriage. I don't agree with her posing for the pictures but this does not change the message of marriage. We should use this as a reminder that our life's testimony can water down our message. I pray we will pay close attention to our life's work so our message is not lost in the noise that the world can create.

Science verses Morals-Stem Cell Research

Deuteronomy 28:1-48

I am not a scientist but I believe I am a rational thinker. Our government is now making decisions based on falling behind other countries.

Obama warned of the risks of falling behind other countries in scientific research by keeping in place government restrictions on funding.

"When government fails to make these investments, opportunities are missed. Promising avenues go unexplored. Some of our best scientists leave for other countries that will sponsor their work. And those countries may surge ahead of ours in the advances that transform our lives," Obama said. "But in recent years, when it comes to stem cell research, rather than furthering discovery, our government has forced what I believe is a false choice between sound science and moral values. In this case, I believe the two are not inconsistent."

We are setting aside the moral influence for the argument of staying a leader. I say we were world leaders because we chose in the past to put right above short cuts. As I watch the evening news now I see our government daily making decisions based on short sided views that will cost future generations. If you were to read Deuteronomy 28 above you will see a sad commentary of where we are as a nation. The Lord has blessed our nation because of our obedience but Americans seem to think we are above failing. We are treading on dangerous ground right now. We are surrendering our convictions and we can see where this will lead in the later verses of chapter 28. I pray that we as a nation will realize the destructive path we are headed down.

Tithing & The Stimulus Package

Matt 22:15-22 & Mal 3:8-12

Well our new President has put his own stamp on our economy with his new stimulus bill. The details are slowing leaking out about this bill. One of the details that catches my attention is the tax deduction of charitable giving. The reports are that this deduction will be removed for people making over certain amounts. The reporter said this will hurt charities all across the country including Churches. The passages listed above make it clear that the Lord wants us to pay our taxes and give our Tithe. The difference in the two is seen in the words "pay & give". Don't get me wrong the Lord is clear in Mal 3:8 that we are robbing God when we don't give but he wants us to be cheerful givers II Cor 9:7. We should not give to get a tax deduction this means we are giving for the wrong reason. The Lord makes it clear in Matt 22 he does not connect the two identities together. He said give each its due. When the government calculates taxes its off the top that's the least we can do for the Lord. I guess if the tax deduction was removed all together we might find our motives & faith tested even more. We are being encouraged even taught more and more to trust our government to take care of us. It all most seems like they are trying to take away the very thing that can take care of us as a nation. I want to remind myself and everyone else our trust is in the Lord so when or if the government decides to take away the deduction for charities we don't flinch and give in to fear. You see many people will begin to think in their minds if I am giving $100 and this change raises my taxes by $25 I will reduce my giving by $25 no big deal. It is a big deal because we are telling the Lord the government is bigger than you. I say pay the extra $25 and keep giving your $100 and trust the Lord.

Fireproof

The movie Fireproof is debuting as I write this article on Friday Sept 26th. The reason I chose this subject is the movie is about marriage. In the last six weeks I have had two good friends call or email me and tell me their wives were leaving them and filing for divorce. I will spare you the details but needless to say in divorce situations both parties bear some of the blame and I would not begin to defend one side of the other. As the NHLA converges on the fair city of San Francisco I begin to think of this city and one thing does come to mind. The fight going on in CA over what marriage should be and I certainly have my opinion on this subject but the truth is my opinion does not matter. It is God’s opinion that matters and his alone. Christians from all over the country protest, write blogs, write to the local editorial pages, sign petitions and are very active on this subject trying to influence the direction our country is going. I commend them for this effort. I would like to take a minute to look at this situation from a different point of view, not from a different opinion. We are all concerned with the direction of our country and the influences pulling at our children. Our kids are confused by what surrounds them today in the world but what confuses them even more is indifference in the Christian realm to real marriage. We say as Christian’s, marriage is between one woman and one man. I say we are not teaching our kids that to be true when there are just as many divorces in the Christian community. Maybe the answer to solving this problem we face in helping define marriage is being undermined by our own behavior in our homes. Our kids need to see us love more, care more, pray more etc, etc. I think you get the idea. This article is not intended to be a counseling piece for marriages in trouble. This article is intended to get our focus on the main thing. The old saying “keep the main thing the main thing” is very true. Our kids need to see what a family is on a daily basis not hear about what a family isn’t. You can’t have one without the other. My understanding is when the FBI trains their people about counterfeit money they have them study the real thing so much that when they see counterfeit money it stands out. If you try and study all the ways to counterfeit then you lose focus. I say let our kids study the real thing in our homes and then we can have confidence they will be able to spot the fake when the time comes. Please don’t misunderstand, I do believe we should stand up for what is right and do all the things mentioned above when confronted with sin but we can’t ignore the impact our daily lives have on our children. I want to encourage you to take the time and go with your family to see the new movie Fireproof. If you want information about this movie please visit www.fireproofthemovie.com and I believe we should support good movies at the theatre if we want more of these types of programs to be produced. If you have friends that are struggling in their marriage then I encourage you to invite them to come along and see this movie together. You might just help influence them to try and improve their marriage relationship. Let’s fight just as hard to save our marriages as we do on other commendable social issues. One line from this movie says it all “NEVER LEAVE YOUR PARTNER BEHIND”!

Spiritual vs Political View

Romans 1:17-32
I want to assure you this article is not my political opinion but it is the Lord’s message to every generation including ours. Paul wrote concerning his generation and the fact that they were beginning to worship creation/creatures instead of the Creator (Rom1: 25). I know we care about the environment and want to be good stewards of what God has given us. What I do see in our country though is a major trend toward fanatical protection of the environment and quote people’s rights to sin. God makes it plain where or what direction a nation is going when they begin down this slippery slope. I care more about the spiritual direction than the political direction we are going as a country. We are not worshipping God but his creation and the creatures.

All of the great empires that have come before us were not stuck down from other countries invading and conquering them. They all fell from within and I believe we are headed down that deadly path that has only one end. If you read Rom 1:26-27 I believe you will agree that is not describing God’s plan for his family.

As you continue to read this passage Rom 1:28 you will see that man has chosen not to retain God in their thoughts and lives. This certainly sounds like the political climate today as God is daily being removed from the sphere of influence. In turn man suffers the consequence of being left to live life according to man’s wisdom not God’s. Which we all know leads to disastrous results. Just read Rom 1:29-31!

I can’t tell you for sure how far down the road to disaster we are as a nation but I am convinced that our nation is on this course. I believe we should be good stewards of the environment and treat people with respect but I don’t find anywhere in God’s Word where it says we as Christians are to tolerate sin or worship what God created. I pray that we will be what God expects us to be as Christians not what the world expects us to be.

We have to be careful that we follow God’s Word not our sinful heart’s path (Jer. 5:23-25 & Jer. 17:5-10). As you read these passages you will see what happens when we are left to ourselves we fail miserably. Praise God our success is not dependent on us! Our victory comes in Christ alone. I want to challenge all of us including myself to follow Christ in our daily walk so we can make a difference in our nation which so badly needs the Light of God’s Word.