4GiVn

The Days of Lamech

2011-09-26T23:05:00.001-05:00

Have you ever been to the "Old World"? You know, Italy or Egypt or someplace with significant amounts history? Do you remember that tingling feeling of excitement that you got as you gazed at the creative works of Michelangelo or the Pharaohs? Has your breath been taken away as you walk along the ramparts of a thousand year old Scottish castle or the miles of the Great Wall in China?

That's the feeling I got when I was reading Jon Saboe's latest work, The Days of Lamech. We've heard bits and pieces about the heroes of old, but Saboe weaves a stimulating tale that is both biblically plausible and captivating to read.

Ever wonder who the Nephilim were or what part they had to play in history? What might the pre-flood world have been like? Is the biblical account of a global flood scientifically accurate or even possible? All of these questions have answers, and Saboe composes this novel filled with documentary-level credibility enveloped in an action-driven storyline so that the reader never realizes they are learning while reading.

The ending is outstanding, so don't let the 500 pages intimidate you into submission!

The Global Flood

2011-09-20T22:02:00.000-05:00

The earth experienced the most terrible act of God/catastrophe of all time about 4500 years ago when waters from the deep burst forth and there was rain for 40 straight days. The upheaval of the continental plates, volcanoes, tsunamis, and earthquakes destroyed all pre-flood civilizations and killed everyone that did not listen to the warnings of God through Noah.

The evidence of this year long tragedy is all around us.

In the next year or two, there will be a major motion picture of the events that led up to the flood and the flood itself. Check out the production company's website here for more information.

2 Peter 2:5

And God did not spare the ancient world—except for Noah and the seven others in his family. Noah warned the world of God's righteous judgment. So God protected Noah when he destroyed the world of ungodly people with a vast flood.

The Tragedy of Casey Anthony

2011-06-26T14:16:00.000-05:00

Has anyone heard this story in the news about Casey Anthony? Apparently, a young mother decided to kill her two year old girl, Caylee, in the name of convenience. America is horrified, and rightly so.

This terrible tragedy unmasks the way that people can de-humanize someone else in order to treat them immorally. This was done in the 17th and 18th centuries to Africans to legitimize slavery. Even now, people tend to treat people of other races as somehow inferior. Sadly, the practice of dehumanizing people continues without shame to unborn babies worldwide.

Caylee was two years old, and America is horrified that a mother could suffocate her little girl. What if Caylee has been only one year old? Would it still have been such an awful atrocity? What about 1 month old? Of course, it would be considered a crime at the highest level!!!

But if Caylee were still growing safely in her mother's womb, and the infanticide practitioner forcefully invades her natural incubator to end her life, then half of America applauds Casey's "constitutional right" to murder her own child.

Sadly, God's Word has been largely disregarded in our culture starting with Genesis, which is mocked more heartily than most any other written document. But in Genesis 1:27, we find the foundation for how we should treat others: "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them." People are not animals that can be discarded in the name of convenience. We have been created in the very image of God, and he sent His only son to pay the ultimate price in order that our relationship with God could be restored. John 3:16 tells us plainly, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

The Enemy Within, Part 2

2011-06-07T20:28:00.002-05:00

In today's Christian culture, things labelled as Christian are allowed almost complete free-reign within the walls of Christendom. Christian music, Christian singles websites...attach Christ to it or stick a Christian fish on it, and Shah-bang! It's acceptable to the millions of people, who identify themselves as Christians...with hardly a challenge. In an effort to engage the Christian culture through printed media, the periodical, Christianity Today writes articles about religion and other contemporary issues.

In The Enemy Within, Part 1, an analogy was crafted using Homer's epic poem, The Illiad. The Greeks brought down the mighty city of Troy without massive siege-works or modern explosives. Instead, they used Guile, Deception, and Temptation.

Today's modern Trojans, the protestant Christian church, has been fighting off attacks for centuries. A new tactic emerged in the 1800's to replace God's involvement in Creation through a "scientific" cause...evolution. And until recently, this tactic was wielded only at the hands of atheists. Although the mighty Trojan wall, God's Word, has repelled the direct attack in a head-on fashion from the interior of protestant Christendom, the plot of evolution has recently been courted by those claiming to be have the interests of Christianity at heart.

Christianity Today's article, The Search For the Historical Adam, is a prime example of the Trojan Horse at the gates. As soon as the solid wall of God's Word can be marginalized through the deception of evolution, the final destruction on the effectiveness of the church can begin from within.

There are guardians on this wall. Those, who feel it is their duty to preserve God's Word with valiant efforts. Answers In Genesis, Creation Ministry International, the Institute For Creation Research, and a hundred others are fighting the likes of Francis Collins and Reasons to Believe, who choose to rationalize the Bible by claiming it to be mythology. It is truly beyond the pale to hear these modern Greek warriors in their veil of scientific credentialism, their Trojan Horse, wield the enemy's weapon, evolution, as if it were something that the church should embrace. And why did Christianity Today fail to interview even one of the guardians in their "unbiased" article? Only those within the Trojan Horse were interviewed for their contribution to the battle.

Scanning the websites of the guardians, it is easy to see that there is plenty of scientific evidence and scriptural evidence to deflect the flaming arrows of the enemy. But we on the inside of the walls must not yield to the pressure of desiring cultural acceptance, and we must continue to trust God's Word as true.

Let's not end this prolonged war the way the Trojans did by opening the gates willingly to the enemy. We must recognize the attack for what it is and stand firm on God's Word.

The Enemy Within, Part 1

2011-06-07T19:02:00.001-05:00

Do you remember the epic journey of Odysseus, Achilles, and Agamemnon in their quest to "rescue" Helen from the clutches of the Trojans? Since the Greeks won the war, they got to portray the Trojans as the villains, but what if a Trojan history book had survived. Could it be that Paris rescued Helen from an abusive marriage to Menelaus? What might have changed in the perspective of the story in how we remember this ten year war today?

And do you remember how the Greeks were finally able to defeat the Trojans after failing for TEN years? The Trojan Horse. The Greeks constructed a massive hollow horse and hid a dozen warriors inside. They left the "gift" at the gate of Troy and pretended to sail away. Once the Trojans let the horse through the gates of their protective wall and celebrated the departure of the Greeks, their fate was sealed. The Greek warriors inside the horse opened the gates of Troy to allow the Greek army inside, and sleeping Troy was destroyed.

The wall that protected Troy for a decade was impotent to stop the attack from within. Once the Greeks deceptively eluded the walls with the gift horse, the destruction of Troy was imminent.

Today, the idea of a Trojan horse is synonymous with inviting something that looks attractive into a vulnerable interior to its ultimate doom.

The Word of God has stood as an impenetrable wall around Christendom since Guttenburg first printed the Bible on his printing press. Once people could read the Bible for themselves, heresies in the church were slowly discarded and evangelism has been able to grow. The bride of Christ has been under constant attack from many angles, but God's Word has repelled the attacks.

But in the last 150 years, a cleverly devised and insidious plot has surfaced to attack faith in God as Creator.

Part 2 of The Enemy Within.

Didn't John Lennon Say "There's No Heaven?"

2011-05-19T23:32:00.000-05:00

So the ~~foremost~~ most popular cosmologist of the 21st century now agrees with the a 60's rocker who might or might not have developed his lyrics during drug-induced stupors.

In 1971 Lennon sang:

Imagine there's no heaven
It's easy if you try

In 2011 Stephen Hawking wrote:

There is no heaven or afterlife

It would be difficult to determine the motivation for John Lennon other than to say he was a leader in the religious counter-rEvolutionary movement in the 1960s.

Since Hawking is a famous scientist, he would presumably have some evidence to back up his claim, or has he simply crossed the wall of separation between church and science without a hall pass? Speaking of presumptions, Hawking is on dangerous ground to have so definitively dismissed Heaven, when in his own field of research, he is still searching vainly for 96% of the universe.

Jesus promised: "I go to prepare a place for you...that where I am, there you may be also." - John 14:2,3. It's also better to earn Heavenly currency than to focus on building up earthly wealth:

"Don't store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there your heart will also be." - Matthew 6:19-21

Drug-enhanced rockers and wayward cosmologists may say there's no Heaven, but don't bet your eternal life on the absence of Heaven...or Hell.

The gap between hero and villain is apparently the width of fur

2011-05-16T18:58:00.001-05:00

It was a cloudless and carefree Sunday afternoon. The spring sun shone down with just enough glow to warm the breeze to a pleasant caress. My wife enjoyed her Mother's Day by slipping away to her peaceful bedroom for a delightful afternoon nap. I lounged in the living room with some relaxing reading. My drowsy reading was interrupted by the ear-splitting scream of my nine year old from the backyard. In seconds, I was streaking through the yard with adrenaline driving my legs toward his desperate cries. He was yelling and kicking at our friendly, family Labradoodle, who was stalking around the dogwood tree.

A pathetic ball of fur and blood clawed frantically for the safety of the tree. As the lame squirrel futilely drug itself towards the trunk with just it's front paws, Mark's moist little eyes bored into me with passion, and he pleaded fervently, "HELP IT, DADDY! HELP IT!!!" We were quickly met at the tree by my pre-teen daughter, who echoed Mark's request for me to help the dying rodent. After snatching away a few timid hands reaching out to "help" the wounded animal, I marched the whole curious band up to the house, to chain up the canine and talk to the children.

Knowing the poor squirrel needed to be put out of its misery, I tried to calmly explain the situation to my compassionate children, who were still clamoring for me to "DO SOMETHING! HELP IT!" I should have taken it as a compliment as their usual adolescent interpretation of my skills is somewhere between a bag of lawn clippings and a lab rat, and now they expect me to be able to mend a broken hip, deep lacerations, possibly a broken back, and a small case of indigestion…at least the poor thing looked like it had indigestion.

Their sympathetic cries turned to horror and disdain as I explained my plan that they stay in the house while I "snuffed out its candle". "TAKE IT TO THE VET, DADDY!" urged Mark. "The vet wouldn't fix a squirrel, buddy…I'm sorry; and I don't want to spend $500 on an animal that will die from his injuries or starvation." Since my sister is an animal rehabilitator, Jessica petitioned "CAN WE TAKE IT TO AUNT DJ's HOUSE?" "I'm sorry, Sweetie; she would just feed it to her owl." I replied. Crossed arms and laser eyes burned into my back, as I left the children in the game room to take on the grim task ahead of me.

After retrieving my shovel from the shed, I looked back to the house to make sure that the kids were still inside. Unfortunately, their view of the impending macabre task was completely unobstructed, so I marched resolutely back down to the dogwood tree only to find the crippled rodent had intrepidly climbed 12 feet up into the tree.

He was looking down on me, chittering painfully and shivering uncontrollably. Now, my fear was that he would climb out to the edge of the branch and die…only to fall into the brambles in my neighbor's yard and stink for a month where he could not be disposed of.

So, now the kids got to watch their big, strong daddy swing the shovel of death at the defenseless creature in an attempt to knock it from the tree of refuge down to the killing grounds. And what should enter my ears from the house, but the banging of four little protesting fists on the windows of the game room. Only three or four swings later, I hear, "MOMMY!!!! STOP DADDY!!!!!! HE"S KILLING AN INNOCENT ANIMAL!!!! STOP HIM! STOP HIM!!!"

Now down on the ground, the poor guy tried vainly to dislodge the makeshift guillotine with his front paws, and I'm feeling lower than the one-armed Luke, beaten and hopeless, when Darth Vader revealed his surprising parentage.

About six hours later, I'm retelling the sad tale to my friend, Troy, and he has his own story to tell. His startled daughter calls him from the driveway to report a 5 foot snake is between her and the house. So, the valiant hero, Troy, runs from the house with yard tools and heroically cuts down the wicked serpent to the wild cheers of his thankful family, who had all came outside to watch his heroism!

The gap between hero and villain is apparently the width of fur.

Terrible Tsunami Tragedy

2011-05-09T18:31:00.000-05:00

The destructive force of water is enormous! We've just recently witnessed how a single earthquake and the subsequent tsunami brought devastation to the people of Japan.

Imagine what three or five or ten simultaneous tsunamis would be like. Genesis 7:11 says that the fountains of the great deep burst forth, which would have cracked the earth's crust like an eggshell. The continental plates would be moving, sliding, and colliding…earthquakes and erupting volcanos like the world has never since seen. This would have caused simultaneous tsunamis all over the earth. Not to mention the forty days of torrential rain to which the Bible refers.

What evidence of this uber-catastrophe can be seen today? Surely, something so devastating would be etched all over the Earth.
    •    Billions of dead things, buried as fossils in sedimentary rock
    •    Pancake-flat layers of rock with little or no erosion between layers
    •    Sorted layers rather than mixed
    •    Poly-strata fossils
    •    Fossils at every elevation of mountains

Sadly, the destruction of the ante-diluvian world was caused by a preponderance of sin and mankind's failure to honor and thank God as he deserved. God still hates sin today, so let's recommit to purging sin from our lives and honoring God with our whole lives.

Can Pro-lifers celebrate the assassination of Osama?

2011-05-05T21:56:00.000-05:00

Despite my strong affiliation with the Pro-Life movement on philosophical/ethical/moral grounds, my initial reaction to the death of the infamous terrorist, Osama Bin Ladin, was "Awesome! I'm glad he's dead!" I even went so far as to say, "I wish he had not gotten a Muslim-compliant burial…he should have been buried with bacon."

But a friend of mine brought up a good point about whether we should celebrate his death. Yes, he was notorious. Yes, he was responsible for the deaths of thousands of Americans.

However, he died without recognizing his need for the saving grace of Jesus. While Americans have been cheering for his death, he is bound to an eternity in hell.

I purposefully titled this blog entry provocatively to see how people would respond. I still think Osama got his earthly justice, but I want to express my own revelation that Christians living in the United States should not be more closely tied to American nationalism than we are to the Great Commission.

Tell me what you think.

Why Is There Pain And Death?

2011-03-31T03:17:00.001-05:00

As someone who believes the Bible to be the best history book in...well history (including the Genesis account of creation), my standard response to the question: "Why is there pain and death?" has been "It's because Adam (and subsequently everyone else) sinned."

There are ample Biblical passages to support this, and all of Christian doctrine rests on the idea that there was no death, pain, and suffering before sin entered into the world (Genesis 1:31, Genesis 3:17-19, Romans 8:20-23, Romans 5:12-21, Romans 6:23...)

I've been told by some compromising Christians that death is not really a bad thing, and that it is just a natural part of life. Scripture obviously refutes this idea in I Corinthians 15:12-28 and Romans 6:23.

But after reading Matthew 13:24-30, I think (in addition to the fact that mankind brought sin,pain, death into the world) another reason why we face pain and persecution is that we have an enemy that hates us.

Here is another story Jesus told: “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a farmer who planted good seed in his field. But that night as the workers slept, his enemy came and planted weeds among the wheat, then slipped away. When the crop began to grow and produce grain, the weeds also grew. “The farmer’s workers went to him and said, ‘Sir, the field where you planted that good seed is full of weeds! Where did they come from?’ “‘An enemy has done this!’ the farmer exclaimed.

The enemy of God hates Christians as well as the Creator, and as long as we are still awaiting our adoption as sons (Romans 8), we will be subject to Satan's attacks. Although unwanted and hurtful, God can use Satan's painful attacks to galvanize our faith.

So, when you feel pain and weariness, take heart that you are growing (James 1:2-4) and that followers of Christ will be ultimately victorious!

Old Earth or Young?

2011-01-07T17:06:00.001-06:00

If you've read very many articles on my blog, you'll know that I have a strong opinion that God created the Earth just as He said He did in Genesis. Some who feel it is better to compromise with the current scientism paradigm (that the Earth is billions of years old, which would include for the compromisers that there was death, bloodshed, and suffering before Adam sinned) try to re-interpret God's scripture to cram these billions of years into it with some interesting mental gymnastics.

From time to time, I read blog posts at other sites, and I ran across this one, which is a fascinating topic.

I ended up debating one of the ~~compromising~~ well-meaning old earthers, and one of the questions that I seemed not to have an answer for at the time was "Does the Genesis account really say that there were no other people created OUTSIDE the garden with which the family of Adam and Eve could have intermarried?"

I pointed out that the New Testament points out that sin came from Adam, and the penalty for sin is death, but they came back with "Well, that's just death for people...not animals or pre-humans."

I pointed out that Adam named his wife Eve because she would become the mother of all living (Gen 3:20), but they came back saying that living meant only spiritually alive...having God's image.

So it wasn't until I came across this article from CMI that I realize this good rebuttal to their claims.

Genesis 2:18-20 answers the question that God said man should not be alone, and He would create a suitable helper for him. And God brought all the beasts of the field, and no suitable helper for Adam was found.

There could not have been pre-humans that evolved from less-evolved creatures according to scripture. All of the Bible stands together to show that God's word is true, and as we look around to see the world around us, there is no need to compromise this position to appease the scientoids and their billions of years.

Under Pressure

2010-11-11T22:27:00.000-06:00

Pressure is an interesting phenomenon. Looking at the numbers, it tends to find the weakness in the enclosing structure and exploit it. Take, for instance, the buried oil in the Earth's crust.

We recently saw the effects of the pressure when BP's oil rig lost containment on the pressurized oil field in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Louisiana. The oil pumped and pumped and was only stopped after months of man-made intervention.

The current paradigm's scientism voice preaches that these oil reserves are 60 million years old or more. Is it feasible to expect all of these ultra-high pressure oil fields to have remained under this intense pressure that entire time?

It sounds unreasonable to me too, and along with the many other evidences that dispute long ages, I would agree with the Bible that the Earth is about 6000 years old.

Where was Jesus From?

2010-05-17T22:25:00.001-05:00

I've never been able to read through the entire Bible in a year. Twice previously, I have undertaken the quest of reading through the Bible in 365 days. Both times I completed the reading, but both times I crammed my 12 months of reading into about 18 months.

Now on my third attempt, I am on pace for 12 months and holding steady, but today I had to read two days worth to catch up...and I am so glad that I did, or I would have missed this connection in the life of Jesus.

John 7:40-55 tells the story of Jesus teaching the crowds during and after the Feast of Tabernacles with such aplomb that many, who previously rejected him as the Christ began to question whether he might truly be the promised Messiah.

The Pharisees hated and wanted to kill Jesus, and they responded, "How can the Christ come from Galilee? Does not the Scripture say that the Christ will come from David's family and from Bethlehem, the town where David lived?" Israel's teachers had the wrong information, which they used to form a bad conclusion, and they missed the promised Messiah. When the temple guards returned without apprehending Jesus as ordered by the priests, the guards explained that they agreed with the teachings of Jesus. The Pharisees vainly chided them with "You mean he has deceived you also? Has any of the rulers or the Pharisees believed in him? No!" Bad information and pride in their place of authority caused these men to miss out on salvation in Christ.

In the following chapter, Jesus answers the same critics in a separate conversation with the remarks, "Even if I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is valid, for I know where I came from and where I am going. But you have no idea where I come from or where I am going." He was able to say this with both spiritual and physical meaning. They rejected his divinity and ultimate source because they refused to believe that he could have been born in Bethlehem.

I thought that in an of itself was a remarkable link in the scriptures and was glad I read them both on the same day, even though I was scheduled to read them on separate days. But I've got even more to share. If you'll bear with me a few more paragraphs, I've got an application of this for today's culture.

The dominant paradigm of thought today is that evolution can explain the appearance and culmination of organisms...all without the interaction of the loving God of the Bible. Many Christians have tried to compromise the obvious teaching of scripture regarding origins by declaring Genesis a myth and accepting materialistic explanations. In my analogy, we'll compare these compromising Christians to the Pharisees. Bad information leads to bad conclusions. The Pharisees missed the Messiah, and the current compromising Christians are missing out on the joy of trusting God's Word as completely true. They are also missing out of the cohesive nature of scripture and how it is internally consistent.

Like the Pharisees, who mocked the temple guards, they regard the contemporary high priests (evolutionary scientists) as infallible and mock anyone who would actually believe the Genesis account to be true. The evolutionary scientists shout the mantra, "Are there any REAL scientists who doubt evolution to be true?" They have so much knowledge and training, but like the Pharisees, they are unable to see the truth because of bad information which has led them to bad conclusions.

Praise God for His written Word! Don't miss the truth of scripture because high priests of today are worshiping at the altar of Darwinism and mocking those who believe God's Word to be true.

Evidence From Genetics Confirms the Bible

2010-05-17T21:46:00.000-05:00

There are literally oceans and mountains of evidence confirming the truth and historicity of the Bible. But surely genetics is not part of the evidence...is it?

With a straightforward reading of the flood account in Genesis, what kinds of things would we expect to see today?

Billions of dead things buried rapidly
Sedimentary layers all over the earth covering vast distances
Fossilized sea creatures buried high above current sea level
Sorted and distinct layers of soil with little erosion between them

And this is exactly what we find when you begin digging down into the soil. But genetics? Come on?!?!? This has been a bastion of evolutionary ideas since Francis and Crick discovered the DNA molecule? Right?

Well before we make up our minds, let's talk history for just a second to get some background. Genesis 7 tells us that Noah, his wife, their three sons and their three daughter's in law were the only eight humans saved from the flood by the ark.

We'll also need a tiny lesson in genetics. Mothers pass along to their daughters a genetic unit called mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). The mtDNA is not passed along from fathers, so it remains unchanged (other than mutations) from mother to daughter. Therefore, we can trace back a lineage through the mtDNA. How many mtDNA lineages were on the ark? Three. The wives of Noah's sons all have recorded children. It is possible that there could have been four, but the Bible does not record Noah's wife bearing any more children after the flood.

So, if that story is true, how many mtDNA lineages might we expect to find today? Three, right? Well, that is exactly what secular genetics confirms. The current mtDNA lines have been given the designations "M", "N", and "R". God's Word is confirmed yet again.

If you're interested in seeing a more detailed explanation of this article, you can see it on creation.com's website.

The Fossil Record. What Does it Actually Show?

2010-05-09T23:08:00.000-05:00

Does it show long ages (billions of years) of slowly changing species into modern animals? Or is it a poignant confirmation of the biblical account of catastrophe because of man's sin?

The fossil record is exactly what you would expect to find based on the biblical account in Genesis 7-9.

Check out the images from this blog. You'll see dinosaurs and fish buried so quickly and so catastrophically, that the meal they were eating was only half-way in their mouth! There are a few pictures of a dinosaur "graveyard"...jumbled bones all broken and disorganized as though a flood had trapped hundreds of dinosaurs and buried them under tons of sediment.

Is it Noah's Ark?

2010-05-09T22:50:00.000-05:00

We had a question today in our Christian Worldview of Origins class about whether the recently discovered remains on the mountains of Ararat are actually the historical timbers from Noah's Ark.

I am optimistically cautious that the find "holds water"...so to speak. Some of the positive signs so far:
1) It is in the right place (it fits the Biblical description of the mountains of Ararat.)
2) It is 5000 feet above the tree line and human civilizations
3) It is buried or partially buried in a mountain glacier. (this is useful only to note that it would be very diffi...practically impossible to haul tons of lumber UNNOTICED up this tall mountain, construct it, and imbed it in a glacier so that it appears to have been there for 4500 years.)

Obviously, many people will be anxious to rebuke the claims of authenticity, but we should watch for their motives.

You can follow an ongoing discussion about the news and developments of this story at creation.com

Christian Worldview of Origins

2010-05-09T16:41:00.001-05:00

I'm teaching a class at our church called the Christian Worldview of Origins. Our culture today is so biased towards a humanist/evolutionary worldview, that many Christians feel like they have to compromise.

There have been some good questions so far in our classes, and this is a pretty good forum to address some of those.

One of the questions was, "How do evolutionists handle the question of poly-strata fossils?" I went looking on the most popular evolutionist debate site (www.talkorigins.org), and this is what they had to say:

As for Malone's "problem" with the "thousands of years" for the tree to remain upright for "slow accumulation" to occur, it is a non-problem - he is simply interpolating the average depositional rates for an entire formation down to the scale of metres. This is not the correct way to do it, because individual beds can be deposited rapidly (say, sands and mud during a levee breach), and then little deposition can occur for a long time (e.g., a soil horizon), as is observed in modern river floodplain environments where trees commonly occur. In short, he is assuming conventional geologists would interpret the occurrence the simple way he has interpolated - they do not.

Essentially, layers of soil accumulate slowly over millions of year unless you can prove otherwise, like with poly strata fossils. Or evolution happens just like WE say it does, except for the all of those times when organisms stay constant in the fossil record.

Feel free to post other questions, comments, or other ideas.

Politics Cannot Save Us!!!

2010-03-22T11:24:00.000-05:00

Whether you are in rapturous joy or the doldrums of despair today after the signing of the government takeover of healthcare, you've got to admit...it's pretty big news.

There are those who are very excited that the promise of free healthcare will now provide everything they need, and I have to admit I have been in opposition to this particular plan for healthcare reform. But after some reflection and a little overexposure to the issue, I've changed my tune a bit.

This is exactly what one would expect from our representatives with where our country is right now.

My blog and facebook pages are filled with references to how far our country has strayed from the principles of the Constitution. Well, no longer.

As John Adams said:

Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.

We are no longer a moral and religious people as a country. Therefore, the Constitution is no longer adequate for us.

To be able to use history's greatest political document for governing our country once again, there must be a spiritual awakening to the truth of the Biblical gospel. We must individually confess our sins and cry out to God for His Mercy (I Chronicles 7:14).

Only Jesus can save us. He's revealed his will and the instructions for life in his trustworthy and enduring Word. When was the last time you spent some serious time studying God's Word and praying for those around you? Well, brother, that's too long!

Doesn't Canada Have National Healthcare?

2010-02-02T08:25:00.000-06:00

I'm pretty sure Canada has a national healthcare system where everything is freely available to the public and paid for the by the taxpayers government.

So, if all medical procedures are paid for by the government and freely available to all of the citizens, why would the Premier of Canada be coming to the United States for health care procedures?

A decision to leave Canada for the surgery, especially if it is available here, raises questions about the Premier's confidence in Newfoundland's health care system.

If the healthcare bill that progressives are forcing on Americans gets passed, where are Canadian officials, not to mention Americans, supposed to go to get good healthcare? Does Mexico have a national healthcare system? Maybe we can go there for treatment.

Score One for the Good Guys

2009-11-03T12:54:00.002-06:00

Things seem to be getting worse everyday, but here is some encouraging news.

It's more important than Christians think

2009-10-26T15:34:00.003-05:00

I've heard people say it. I've read it on blogs and articles.

"It's just a side issue." "It's not that important." "As long as you believe the words that Jesus said, you don't have to worry about that other stuff."

What side issue or unimportant thing or other stuff might these people be talking about?

Biblical Creation as described in Genesis.

Can someone be a Christian and not believe in the Genesis account of creation and the the worldwide flood? Absolutely. However, I am trying to persuade them with love and compelling evidences, there are close friends of mine that do not believe in the creation as described in Genesis.

If it's not required for salvation, why is it so important?

Read this excerpt from an interview of Richard Dawkins by Hugh Hewitt:

HH: Did you ever believe in God, Richard Dawkins?
RD: Of course, I was a child.
HH: And when did you put off your foolish belief in God?
RD: When did I put away childish things?
HH: Yes.
RD: At the age of about fifteen.
HH: And under who’s influence was it?
RD: I suppose it was the influence, not of Darwin directly, but of the education in evolution that I was receiving.
HH: And did you just up and one day declare that’s it, no God?
RD: No, it was a more gradual process than that, as it was with Darwin himself. I mean, he gradually lost his faith.

Public educators get the current generation of youth for about 30 hours a week. Nearly 100% of the science/worldview teaching is favorable or indoctrinating regarding the teaching of evolution. If today's youth spend 1-2 hours a week in Sunday school, are they getting enough information to counter the humanistic/materialist dogma of the atheists?
In the media, TV shows, internet, radio, etc...our youth are exposed to the poisonous attitude of our culture regarding the Bible. The most potent toxin in this poison is evolution.

When looking at the evidence with Biblical lenses rather than atheistic lenses, the creation account in Genesis is perfectly reasonable...in fact, likely. Likely? Can it be proven 100%?

That's where faith comes in (Hebrews 11:1). Faith in the reliability of God. Nothing in God's Word has ever proven to be false or wrong. The opposite is true...the more scientists/scholars learn and uncover, the more reliable God's word is proven to be.
Creation is not a side issue, because when our youth (and even adults) are not exposed to a Biblical worldview starting in Genesis and prepared for the atheist's attacks, they will be ripe for crashing hard and leaving the church forever.

Memorializing a Legend

2009-07-08T15:39:00.002-05:00

No, I'm not talking about the just entombed pedophile.

After all, this is the year of Charles Darwin! The 150th year since the release of his paradigm-changing masterpiece, The Origin of Species Or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life.

This year also marks the 200th year of Darwin's birth. Charles Darwin is being memorialized around the world this year for his "great" work as a scientist and author.

It's unfortunate that his work has legitimized so many evil things in today's culture including (but not limited to racism.) This article highlights the awful conclusions from following Darwinism to its rational outcome.

Finally, if you have not seen the movie Expelled - No Intelligence Allowed, I highly recommend it. I purchased it this week, and have enjoyed watching it. If you would like to borrow it, let me know, but it is definitely worth adding to your DVD library.

Controlling the Long Arm of the Law

2009-07-02T12:58:00.000-05:00

A friend let me borrow Ron Paul's Revolution, and I have been reading through it at lunch. It is a fantastic work, and if you get the chance, it's worth your time to read the 167 page gem.

In Chapter 3 (The Constitution) Dr. Paul is talking about the un-Constitutionality of abortion when he writes this:

Let us remember, though, that the law can do only so much. The law isn't what allowed abortion; abortions were already being done in the 1960s against the law. The courts came along and conformed to the social and moral changes that were taking place in society. Law reflects the morality if the people. Ultimately, law or no law, it is going to be up to us as parents, as clergy, and as citizens-in the way we raise our children, how we interact and talk with our friends and neighbors, and the good example we give-to bring about the changes to our culture toward greater respect for life.

These poignant words are a sorrowful reminder of how low our culture has already debased itself. With our government consumed only with itself, is it any wonder that selfishness and greed are the spotlight character vices of today's world.

Abortion will continue, not only because the law allows it, but because the culture is shamelessly selfish and greedy.

Let this be a call to arms for all of us to reject greed and boldly stand against evil. We must be willing to sacrifice the temporary comforts of this life with a Heavenly perspective.

He is no fool, who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose. - Jim Elliot

Let's Consider it a Post-Birth Abortion

2009-06-05T08:55:00.004-05:00

The murder of George Tiller has probably set back the Pro-Life movement in obtaining the objective of ending abortion in America by at least half a decade. But I'll shed no tears for the loss of this abortionist. What Tiller's murderer did was wrong, and shouldn't be praised by anyone. By taking human life, his actions were not in accordance with the pro-life movement.

Tiller has been portrayed in the media as a champion of women, but he should more reasonably be called a champion of death. This article from LifeNews highlights his championship records of pain, errors, obstruction of justice, and death.

Don't be fooled by the media; Tiller is no martyr. He was a murderer and shared the fate of thousands of children whose life he brutally cut short.

It Depends on Your Perspective

2009-04-17T16:50:00.003-05:00

The Department if Homeland Security has identified right wing extremists as:

Napolitano points to a footnote in the document that defines “rightwing extremism” as “groups and individuals that are dedicated to a single issue, such as opposition to abortion or immigration.”

“Rightwing extremists will attempt to recruit and radicalize returning veterans in order to exploit their skills and knowledge derived from military training and combat.”

There is great fear among the liberals that the "right wing extremists" are domestic terrorists.

This parable may help you see the ridiculousness of the above idea:

A man that rapes 3 dozen little girls would see someone who looks at pornography as simply a moderate. The rapist would see a monogamous man, who is faithful to his wife as an extremist.

The liberals have spent their time raping every line of the Constitution, but have the gall to brand law-abiding citizens as the terrorists.

I suppose it all depends on your perspective.

What does the law say?

2009-04-14T11:50:00.002-05:00

Does the federal government have unlimited power? It seems so these days, but the law (the US Constitution) limits the power of the federal government. Any power that is not explicitly granted to the Federal government is SPECIFICALLY granted to the state or people.

At new bill (HR450) has been presented on the floor of congress to enforce this Constitutional mandate. A short paraphrase of the bill goes something like this:

Each bill passed by congress must have the line or phrase from the Constitution that specifically authorizes Congressional power in the area of the bill.

For more information see the WND article.

If this inspires you to do so, please contact your representative and encourage them to vote for this bill. From this link, type in your zip code near the top and find your congressional representatives and send them a message.

It's our country, let's not let the government snowball us with gargantuan stimulus bills that are unconstitutional and other surplus garbage.

In a related note, many states are now stepping up to their constitutionally mandates powers and suggesting that the federal government get its nose out of state business.

My New Favorite Holiday

2009-03-09T15:32:00.003-05:00

You'll have to forgive me as I wretch. The vapors of sarcasm are so thick in the title of this blog entry.

Tomorrow is one of the most anticipated holidays, and it pains me to write an entry on my blog about it. It pains me because our country, our culture, and apparently common sense are following the newly minted money into the bottomless black hole. It pains me that innocent children are being murdered everyday in "so-called" health centers that are not all that healthy.

Read the link below, weep with me and pray that the current trend in our culture of disregarding human life will be a short one...never to reappear.

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2009/03/does_hallmark_have_a_card_for.html

Finally, Change We Can Believe In

2009-01-29T13:08:00.003-06:00

With Barak Hussein Obama now executing his office as commander in chief, it looks like partisan infighting, genocidal tendencies, and racial bigotry are finally ending worldwide...as long as you ignore this article.

A particularly hateful excerpt from this article highlights the racial discrimination that his presidency was supposed to negate:

When Caucasian congressman Steve Cohen applied to join the Congressional Black Caucus this official reply came from the Caucus:

"Quite simply, Rep. Cohen will have to accept what the rest of the country will have to accept – there has been an unofficial congressional white caucus for over 200 years, and now it's our turn to say who can join the 'the club.' He does not, and cannot, meet the membership criteria, unless he can change his skin color. Primarily, we are concerned with the needs and concerns of the black population, and we will not allow white America to infringe on those objectives."

Beware of Global Warming

2009-01-19T16:01:00.004-06:00

It is apparently my fault that global warming continues to produce a deadly chill all over the world...I have not yet changed all of my light bulbs to the new politically correct mini-florescent ones.

The evidence is becoming obvious (even to the donkeys) that the earth is not going through a period of man-made global warming that requires everyone on the planet to give up their rights and their money to save humanity from inevitable spontaneous combustion.

These links point to the facts that man made global warming is a complete farce:

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=86516

http://www.mlive.com/opinion/flint/index.ssf/2009/01/its_time_to_pray_for_global_wa.html

http://www.dailytech.com/Article.aspx?newsid=13834

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1105053/The-day-sea-froze-Temperature-plunges-MINUS-12C-forecasters-say-wont-warm-Sunday.html

It is clear that the Earth goes through heating and cooling cycles. God designed an amazing ability for the Earth to recover from the extremes with built in features.

Every Vote Counts...Except Republicans

2008-10-08T13:38:00.007-05:00

I got his little blurb from the blog site of Vox Popoli. He's pretty clever

If you call yourself a conservative and you vote for McCain, you should be aware of two things. First, you are not a conservative. Second, you are an idiot. As I wrote on Monday, only a vote for McCain is a wasted vote because it's the only vote that will not provide you what you think you're going to get. The left-liberal votes for Obama and knows he'll get socialism and multi-culturalism in one way or another. (The pacifist, on the other hand, will be disappointed.) The third-party voter votes third party and knows he'll get nothing. The non-voter doesn't vote and doesn't get what he isn't expecting.

The Republican voter, on the other hand, usually votes for conservatism, constitutional judges and small government, but only gets liberalism, activist judges and big government. That's why it is the Republican vote that is truly the wasted one.

Now, I do NOT agree that you are an idiot if you vote for McCain (although many idiots will vote for him.) Without a doubt, decent and intelligent people will vote for him, because they are against Obama's policies. Having said that, I think a better choice is obviously Baldwin.

Obama, McCain, Biden agree

2008-10-04T22:37:00.003-05:00

They all agreed in voting to give tax payer money for the bailout and more pork.

This article has the grizzly details that show not only $1.8 TRILLION in bailing out unethical/ineffective financial institutions but 442 pages of straight pork.

Ron Paul has a reasonable plan, and for whom does Dr. Paul plan to vote? Chuck Baldwin.

Stealing Candy From a Baby

2008-09-24T11:52:00.002-05:00

How do you feel about a bad guy taking something from a small child without asking? A just person is outraged at the prospect.

This year alone our government has taken $1.6 trillion from Jessica, Mark, Kristofer, AJ, JL, Junior, and 50 million other children.

How do Obama and McCain feel about the government stealing from your kids?
"Both Obama and McCain have since said the government's plan to lend AIG $85 billion was regrettable but necessary."

The Republicans and Democrats have become fat-cats expecting the American people to fund bad fiscal policies and windfall retirement packages for CEOs of fiduciary failures.

What does the Constitution Party think about stealing from you and your children?

This man speaks for me

2008-09-20T13:56:00.002-05:00

Imagine with me that you're on the committee to replace your church's senior pastor. There are about a half dozen applicants, but two men have really impressed the committee. They each have plans on how to lead the church forward.

One of the principle applicants is a smooth public speaker, and would be an impressive pastor. It would open up opportunities for increased revenue because his speaking abilities could be broadcast on TV and the Internet. Many people would pay to see his fantastic messages, and because he is young, handsome, and sharp, many people will be ready to give money to support his policies. The only problem with his applicant status is that he has many policies and positions which are against conservative biblical doctrine. He intends to take the church in a direction that is less evangelical and extremely more progressive on social issues.

The other main applicant is not so brilliant a public speaker, but his long and distinguished service at other congregations is well known. He is known to have only one serious moral failure when he divorced his disabled wife to marry a rich young woman. As opposed to the other main applicant, most of his policies agree with biblical doctrine. One of the principle reservations you have with this applicant is that as you look at his former congregations, he was financially irresponsible and left his congregations in deep debt when he moved on. The other reservation you have with his candidacy is that from talking to the deacons in his former churches, he acted as though he were not bound by the rules of the individual churches.

Most everyone on the committee plans to vote for one of these two applicants. They are notable and well-known in the congregation.

But there is also a third applicant that not many have heard of. He has lived a life that confirms the policies and tactics by which he plans to lead. He has never led a church congregation before, but he has been financially responsible is his past business ventures. In your personal interview with him, you found that he agreed with you on how to lead the church in a Biblical manner, how to conduct one's life as a disciple outside church walls, and how to be a good financial steward.

Now it is time for you to vote. Almost everyone in the room has voted for one of the original notable applicants. Your vote could swing the results one way or the other. But you have serious disagreements with the main applicants.

By your vote, you will be saying, "I give this applicant the right to speak for me in matters of church policy and the direction of the church."

Binary Politics

2008-09-16T11:40:00.003-05:00

Many things in life are binary. You know, ON or OFF. Pregnant or not. Alive or dead. How many of you can resonate with me when I say, it's either saved, or the stupid computer had an "Unknown Windows Error" right when had finished typing for 3 hours…and it's gone forever?

Many things in life are not binary. It's not exactly north, but it's not really west either. She's not black or white, she's got a rich heritage from several ethnicities. Was that the best or worst meal you've ever had? Somewhere in between. Was that show funny or dreadful? It was humorous, but not exactly lame. Is that person smart or a moron? Well, he's smarter than Al Gore, but not as smart as Einstein.

Should our presidential candidate be spoon-fed to us as a binary option? It's very frustrating, but it seems to be getting worse each day. "You have to vote for Evil1 or Evil2". And, "If you don't want Evil2 to be president, then you better vote for Evil1." "Just imagine what Evil2 will do to our country if you refuse to vote for Evil1."

The conservative news commentators are saying, "We better band together to vote Evil1 into office because Evil2 can wreck this country." Even James Dobson is now saying, "I might vote for Evil1, because I don't want Evil2 to be president." Most of my friends say, "Well, we don't really like Evil1, but he's better than Evil2."

It's really a shame that the "conservative" media have not mentioned the third option, Chuck Baldwin. This past weekend, my sister asked, "Who's He?" She listens to Christian radio, faithfully attends a Bible believing church, and subscribes to the conservative news magazine, World, but she has never heard of Chuck Baldwin. It's a shame that the media sources in which many Christians trust have completely ignored this presidential candidate. Check out his website; he stands for everything you'd expect a Christian to stand for…everything YOU stand for. So why are Christians voting for Evil1? Please post your comments, so we can discuss.

I'll even start the first obvious question, "Why would someone throw away their vote by voting for someone who is not one of our binary choices?"

Consequences? Not when I'm president!

2008-04-04T09:54:00.006-05:00

This past week the hopeful presidential candidate, B. Hussein Obama (drunk on the forthcoming power due him by occupying the White House) with as much sincerity as he could muster said,

"Look, I got two daughters—9 years old and 6 years old. I am going to teach them first about values and morals, but if they make a mistake, I don’t want them punished with a baby."

It is with horror that I read this quote and realized that he was serious, and that the main stream media did not expel him from the stage. Has our society degenerated so completely that a person running for the highest office in the land can call a “mother carrying the miracle of life” punishment and get away with it?!?!?!? I love my country, and I hope we make a major turn, but with situations like this, my hope is waning. He was insinuating that he would prefer to kill the victim for the mistake of his daughter.

Children are not being taught values and morals if their natural consequences are removed. They are simply being taught that they are above the law.

Here are some potential extracts from letters to the new president, based on his new platform:

“I took on too much debt in an attempt to earn windfall profits. But the value of the dollar has sunk, and I can no longer cover my outgoing cash flow. Shouldn’t I still be allowed to stay in business instead of being punished with bankruptcy and solvency?” – CEO of large bank

“My parents brought me up right, but I’ve recently borrowed too much money for my house, and I can no longer afford the payments because my dollar doesn’t buy as much as it once did. To keep 3 new cars in the garage and child support payments to 2 ex-wives, I am on the verge of losing my home. As an American, should I be punished to live like a commoner in spite of my rash choices?” –Harry Typical

“I’ve lost everything. My career, my dignity, my family. President Obama, can you please use your executive authority to restore my life as an American citizen. I should not be punished by losing everything simply for my decade-long involvement with a prostitution ring” – Former NY governor

“Dear B. Hussein Obama, Can you please do something about my waistline? I’ve eaten too many cookies and Lays Potato Chips, and I haven’t found enough time to exercise. Can you keep me from being punished with a large gut?” – Darla Typical-No-Longer

“My dad also taught me good values and morals. One time, only one time I was focused more on my cell phone conversation than my driving, and I ran a red light. Should I still be punished with maxofacial reconstruction and six months in rehab learning to walk again?” – Johnny Teen

UPDATE: This week, the terrorist group, Hamas, has endorsed B. Hussein Obama for president. This follows a stellar week for the presidential hopeful after he received an endorsement from another terrorist group...the Pittsburgh Steelers.

DJ

2008-04-01T20:16:00.002-05:00

We are praying for you and the baby, DJ.

Update: Everyone is now home. Here are some pictures. We are still praying for DJ to feel better.

Slouching Towards Fascism

2008-04-01T19:57:00.003-05:00

Has anyone seen the Aaron Russo film America: Freedom to Fascism? I just finished watching it and it is almost unbelievable.

The Federal Reserve is a collection of private banks that loans the government money and is in charge of printing our money?!?!?!?

I've got a copy of the film on DVD, and anyone is welcome to borrow it. But if you have a high speed internet connection and 2 hours of sitting in front of your computer, it's posted on Google video by clicking here.

It's actually very informative, and it reminds me that nothing in politics can save us. As scary as the New World Order/IRS/Crooked Government sometimes appear, our home is not here. We have to keep a heavenly perspective and do our best to honor Christ's sacrifice by obeying Him.

1Corinthians 15:19 If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men. 20 But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. 22 For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.

He doesn't have practical answers...

2008-03-19T13:39:00.003-05:00

I was talking to a friend the other day on a short road trip, and the conversation turned to politics. Trying to stay within the bounds of propriety (i.e. not shouting Ron Paul is the only valid candidate), I merely asked what he thought of Ron Paul's fiscal ideas.

His response was troubling to me. "He doesn't have practical answers. He doesn't seem to know what he's talking about", was a close paraphrase of his reply.

I have to heartily disagree with my friend in this issue. As posted before, politics will not save us. But since we are currently in the paradigm of being able to choose our leadership, I hope that all Christians will thoughtfully and prayerfully choose their government. I'll try to post a few links and ideas to help in the "thoughtfully" part of this equation.

Could any of the presidential candidates from this year answer any of these questions (shown below in video form on YouTube) from Ron Paul without purposefully re-directing the question to "Dr. Paul, does your candidacy even have ANY legitimacy?" or "Did you know that supports your candidacy?" or "Why do you hate the 9/11 victims so much?"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVCStbbIvDg&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_8pLpI5rzKI&feature=related

The candidates for president in this election have all been thrown softball questions. None of them have shown substance with integrity that is beyond reproach...except for Dr. Paul.

Obviously, he will not win the election this year, but the ideas to which he holds true have been planted, and when future candidates seek your vote, look for these constitutional ideals.

UPDATE: Ron Paul knows economics. He understands the relatedness of economics to foreign and domestic policies. However, he is not a celebrity like Hillary Clinton, who does not even being to understand economic policy.

The Brites

2008-03-19T10:47:00.003-05:00

Atheists like to refer to themselves as the Brights...obviously because they are "smarter" than anyone who believes in God. Since Darwinism is the principle pillar in the atheistic worldview, showing the massive flaws in Darwinism reveals the emptiness and futility of atheism.

I've stumbled across a new website which mocks their self-appointed title and reveals the hypocrisy of many of their Darwinian claims. It's written from the perspective of the Darwinists in a tongue-in-cheek fashion. Check out the headline archive for barrels of laughs.

After you've read a few, come back here and comment on your favorite article.

UPDATE: Has anyone seen the new Dr. Dick video? Dawkins actually thought it was pro-atheism until his friends informed him that he was being mocked.

What was the world like shortly after the flood?

2008-03-04T16:10:00.003-06:00

I'm not sure exactly what it was like, but Jon Saboe writes a fantastic book called The Days of Peleg that describes a plausible history of culture, science, linguistics, geography, and more from this time period. One of the most fascinating accomplishment of the book is that you can almost follow along in Genesis 10-14.

Saboe has obviously spent countless months researching the Bible, the flood geology, ancient history, ancient religions, and the sources of many old myths as he weaves a tale of adventure about several characters within the ancestral line of Jesus.

If you're not on my waiting list for borrowing my book, you can get it at Amazon, but don't be discouraged by the price, because the book is almost 600 pages so your page to dollar ratio is quite good. Oooopps, maybe the length will discourage you, but, I promise, when you run out of pages to read, you'll wish it were longer.

One of the blessings I received after reading it was a desire to dig deeper into God's word and study it to see if the things written by Saboe were plausible within the Biblical framework. His work is pleasantly in line with God's word. And with so many contemporary authors (Dan Brown, Dick Dawkins, Sam Harris, hitchens...) vehemently attacking the Bible, it is refreshing to read a book that is encouraging, edifying, and enlightening.

Politics won't save us, but...

2007-12-27T12:22:00.000-06:00

...please don't vote for Huckabee in the primaries. When I have more time, I'm going to write a more complete article about why Christians should vote for Ron Paul in the primaries.

The media are denouncing Paul because he's a fruitcake and he wants to change things. Well, the government needs to be changed. We need to realize that just because something operates a certain way, does not mean it is the RIGHT way.

Was there a Department of Homeland Security 4 years ago? Dad, do you remember when FEMA was created? 1979. One year later, the government bloated itself by creating the Department of Education? Does anyone know for what this department is responsible? The IRS has been around a little bit longer, but the only reason the IRS is around is to fund the swollen budget, pork projects, and illegal departments. Obviously, the founders of the constitution did not feel it necessary to create more federal government to deal with these things. They purposefully left the responsibilities for these tasks to the states.

I'm glad Bush nominated some conservative judges, but he has not followed the Constitution, and our country will suffer for it for a long time...Huckabee will follow in Bush's footsteps, who was simply following in the footsteps of many presidents before him down the path, ingloriously paved with the remnants of the Constitution.

From where did the 1st star come?

2007-12-20T17:18:00.001-06:00

This being the Christmas season many of you have no doubt read the gospel account recorded by Matthew when he writes about the “star” that guided the wise men from the East. I have no idea how God could have used a star to lead men across the desert to honor the young Savior, but I believe that he did it. For some reason winter seems like the best time to view stars, so if it is clear where you live, get out tonight and marvel at the uncountable points of light and give God the glory…even though it’s not technically winter for 2 more days.

Have you ever heard the materialist's description of the origin of stars? It goes something like this (from Wikipedia):

“A star begins as a collapsing cloud of material composed primarily of hydrogen, along with helium and heavier trace elements. Once the stellar core is sufficiently dense, some of the hydrogen is steadily converted into helium through the process of nuclear fusion… The formation of a star begins with a gravitational instability inside a molecular cloud, often triggered by shockwaves from supernovae (massive stellar explosions) or the collision of two galaxies.”

Essentially, this is a “Which came 1^st, the chicken or the egg?” problem. According to their own theory on star formation, the explosion of a star is needed to create a star…in some cases, entire galaxies of stars are needed to create stars.

(If you get frustrated with large numbers, you can skip ahead to the last sentence of this paragraph for the clincher.)

Most everyone agrees that there are many, many stars. Some estimates indicate that there are about 100 billion galaxies each containing about 200 billion stars. If we allow for the timeline of the materialists of about 20 billion years, then we can setup a simple math equation that shows the number of stars forming every year without the interaction of God. 100,000,000,000 X 200,000,000,000 / 20,000,000,000 = 1,000,000,000,000 (1 trillion) stars forming every year for 20 billion years. The most staggering way to put this is that on average, approximately 31,700 stars have formed every SECOND for 20 billion years!

As staggering as those numbers are, more compelling is the fact that no one has EVER seen the formation of a single star. And in the face of this devastating evidence, they expect us to believe that each of those trillions of stars formed by the explosion of a previous star. There are more reasons why materialist’s theories are wrong, but I don’t have the time to recount all of them here.

Psalms 19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

“Thank you, Lord, for sending your Son to die for my sins.”

Hypocrisy

2007-12-20T10:41:00.001-06:00

One of the reasons that those in favor of infanticide (also known as pro-choicers) give for allowing abortion in our country is that "women will get an abortion one way or another...either in an abortion clinic - if they are available, or they will go have back-alley abortions."

Well, it looks like Planned Parenthood's clinics are little more than back-alley clinics anyway since they are unwilling to comply with health standards of REAL health clinics.

http://www.lifenews.com/state2698.html

Sex (in marriage) is Wonderful, but unexpected...

2007-11-15T17:06:00.000-06:00

…in the evolutionary worldview. When I was debating a Darwinist online a few months ago, and I asked the question, “Since asexual reproduction is more efficient, why and how did male and female genders develop?”, he was completely stumped. There is no good reason for sexual reproduction to have arisen in a Darwinistic world. Roddy Bullock from Access Research Network (ARN) expounds on this darwinian dilemma in an article from last year.

Thankfully, we live in a created world, which was designed specifically for people to enjoy a fulfilling relationship with our Creator (as well as our spouses). Genesis 1:26-31. Genesis 2:18-25. John 10:10. John 3:16

Roddy Bullock writes a monthly article and posts it here, and I highly recommend all of them. He cleverly pens his thoughts from an intelligent design perspective, but it will take you some time to get through all of them. But if you take 5 minutes a day, you can get through his posted list of high-quality writing.

So, go home and hug your spouse thanking the Heavenly Father for His personal love for you and knowing that we do not live in a world fashioned by evolution. Romans 1

La Dia Cuatro

2007-09-18T16:43:00.000-05:00

This past weekend, I got to attend a discipleship "bootcamp" with an organization called Tres Dias. It was a super blessing! It was 3 days of spiritual and emotional encouragement without the distractions of a watch, TV, cell phone or any other electronic device.

I'll try not to give too much away for those of you who have not yet been able to attend, but it "only gets better."

It was a good reminder of the vital importance of prayer. I am working on becoming a better prayer warrior, because recently I have been complacent in my prayer life.

It's time to move forward with some more effective ACTION as a disciple.

Ole!

Errors Never Sounded so Good

2007-09-11T11:59:00.000-05:00

As part of a promotional offer for signing up to get high-speed internet access at my house, we received a one year subscription to Napster. Napster is an online music subscription company that stores millions of songs for people to listen to. The promotional offer sounded GREAT…with unlimited downloads of music for one year. The reality of the situation is much less optimistic.

None of the downloaded music can be transferred to a CD for listening to in the car or at work. The music can only be played on this same computer that downloads it. That one computer has to remain connected to the internet so Napster can continuously monitor whether or not you retain the rights to listen to these songs. I’m not very pleased with my subscription, because I would really like to listen to these songs on my iPod, but Napster has an approved list of MP3 players, and the iPod is not one of them.

And to top it off, after a year, if I choose not to extent my Napster subscription, any music I have downloaded will expire, and the music on my computer will forever be silenced.

Maybe if I copied this music over and over between two folders on my computer, night and day thousands…millions of times, the music files would get copied incorrectly on an occasion or 2. Perhaps these copying errors would add new and exciting guitar riffs to the music. Maybe the copying errors would inadvertently invalidate the security on the files and allow them to be copied to other computers, MP3 players, or even CD’s. But if I were a betting man, I’d think that these copying errors would make the files completely invalid to the point where they would no longer be able to be played…even on my computer.

Darwinists think that copying errors will add new and exciting “guitar riffs” to the music of DNA. Some copying errors might even extend a fish’s ability to climb out of the water and survive beyond its submarine confinement. The entire mechanism of evolution is built upon the premise that the aggregate of copying errors allow organisms to grow new parts and extend their environments beyond their siblings. Then natural selection will “select” these new advantages for future generations. It’s far more likely, however, that the adventurous fish would have removed itself from the gene pool by getting trapped on land and either suffocated or become dinner for a predator. Just like the restricted files, copying errors invalidate the part of the DNA in organisms that mutated.

Now, I’ve heard that some intelligent designers have built programs to remove the security from these Napster music files, so if anyone has information about where I can find one of these programs, please let me know. :-)

Warning! Biased Opinion to Follow...

2007-08-23T08:47:00.000-05:00

Before you go click on this link, be prepared for some descriptive language. It's not foul or crass, it's just descriptive.

http://www.lifenews.com/nat3297.html

I agree 100%.

Who is Historicus?

2007-08-16T17:15:00.000-05:00

Where did I get the blogsite name ModernHistoricus? I expected someone to ask, so I was saving this for a time when curiosity got the best of my readers, but I couldn’t wait any longer. :-)

I really wanted to get the Historicus.blogspot.com site, but it was already taken by someone who never uses it. Bummer!

But the idea for the name came from a bit of American history. I really enjoy listening to audio books, and a couple of years ago, I borrowed Founding Brothers from our local library. A quick summary of the book is that America’s Founding Fathers fought amongst themselves like, well, brothers. There were political, personal, and value differences that caused them to squabble and compromise to create this great country in which we live today. None of the differences were as massive as the issue of slavery. When drafting the constitution the founders were purposefully vague on the issue of slavery knowing that it would asphyxiate the infant nation if slavery were abolished or embraced with totality. Some members of the founding brotherhood fought for slavery to continue based on the economical importance of states rights. Others, mostly from the north, recognized the moral hypocrisy of building a nation on the strengths of personal freedom while enslaving a particular people group.

One champion of abolishing slavery was Benjamin Franklin. The author, inventor, ambassador, and statesman wrote many things using aliases. One of his aliases was Historicus. In 1790, Franklin’s last public essay was submitted to the Federal Gazette signed as “Historicus.” The article was a rebuttal to Georgia’s senator, James Jackson, who had recently argued for the continuation of African slavery.

Franklin’s keen wit was on display in the response to Jackson’s case. The article cleverly agreed in its entirety with Jackson’s argument, but from the opposite point of view. Historicus told the story of Ibrahim, who was an Algerian slave-trader. Ibrahim was rationalizing to his superiors how important it was to continue to enslave the white Christians.

If we forbear to make Slaves of their People, who in this hot Climate are to cultivate our Lands? Who are to perform the common Labours of our City, and in our Families? Must we not then be our own Slaves?

How far the rationalizations of the southern politicians must have been to see the parallels in Historicus’ paragraph:

Here [the slaves’] lives are in safety. They are not liable to be impressed for soldiers, and forced to cut one another’s Christian throats, as in the wars of their own countries.

Here’s the full text, if you’re interested:

http://www.jmu.edu/madison/center/main_pages/madison_archives/era/african/elite/trade.htm

The content of the article was so intriguing to me that I began to understand that slavery in America still exists today…in the form of abortion. Politicians waft left and then right to avoid being labeled as pro-life or pro-choice. The motives are no longer as noble as birthing a nation but to attract other waffling voters.

How is slavery anything like abortion?

Only specific people groups are targeted. In the 1700s it was Africans. Today it’s unborn children.
Economic convenience is sited as a major factor for rationalizing both slavery and abortion.
Slave owners and pro-choicers would both say, “The slave/fetus is better off enslaved/aborted than be in the situation they would otherwise have been in.”
Both issues are the primary political concern of their respective cultures.
Both problems degrade the value of human life and influence society to devalue humans beyond just their respective issue.
“States rights” are championed by slave owners. “Personal liberty” is shouted as justification for murdering one’s offspring. While both states rights and personal liberties are important to the survival of the country’s republican government, the immoral justifications are a pollution of the noble causes of states rights and personal liberties.
It may very well take a war to remove abortion from our society like it took to eradicate slavery. I hope abortion can be vanquished without another domestic war, but it is not looking likely to end anytime soon.

That is not a comprehensive list of the commonalities (feel free to add more in the comments), but it is a reasonable comparison.

In short , this is why I chose the name Historicus. I hope to spur change in my own culture to end the barbaric practice of abortion, and engage the pro-abortionists with the powerful truth of God’s Word.

God made each and everyone of us in His image, and He loves enough to have sent His Son to die for us. Every human life is valuable to Him, and I desire to live in a culture that values people…all people, like He does.

How Important is Our Reputation?

2007-08-16T15:10:00.000-05:00

I’m sorry for the long delay between postings. Those Darwinists really get me riled up, and I haven’t gotten any of them to post on this blog…yet.

A friend of mine commented this week that his reputation was in jeopardy because of someone he knew, who was making some bad choices. He’s in a teaching role, and he said he’d rather step down from his teaching role if those listening to him did not show positive changes.

It got me thinking about our role as Christians. I think it is our job to share the gospel, it is the Holy Spirit’s role to do the convicting, and it is the listener’s role to effect repentance in their lives. Whether or not we see change in people’s lives, we still need to be sharing the truth of the gospel to those whom we have been called to share.

Can these thoughts be supported biblically? Any references? I’d be interested in your thoughts.

Slouching Towards Gomorrah

2007-07-20T13:46:00.001-05:00

Awful! Barbaric! Sadistic! Cruel!

All of these words have been flying around with the indictment of Michael Vick for dog fighting. I've never witnessed sponsored dog-fighting (although our two dogs sometimes have pretty loud if temporary tussles of their own), and I imagine that the dogfights are brutal and cruel...especially for the losers. Our family enjoys our canine pets, and some dogs have even been movie stars and heroes. There's even a United States law prohibiting the organization of and engagement in dog-fighting. But in the end, they're just dogs.

Where's the loud outcry for the hundreds or thousands of babies, who are barbarically and sadistically killed in the name of convenience? The cries of these human beings fall on the deaf (and apparently dumb) ears of the media. Hurt a dog or a salamander and PETA warrants prime time coverage on every station in America. But kill a defenseless child by abortion and the media is content to sweep this under the rug of freedom.

Disclaimer: Our home hosts several pets, and we do not mistreat them in any way. My sister is a wildlife rehabilitator. The Bible instructs mankind to rule over the animals and the planet with prudence. I hope cruelty to animals becomes a thing of the past. But the value of human life has been and continues to be degraded when these animal mistreatment trials gain popularity over real problems.

Prediction: Michael Vick will probably not do jail time for dog-fighting. He'll plea-bargain and get a huge fine and community service after being found guilty of an activity you you find somewhere on TV right now...gambling.

Random mutations are dynamite not creators

2007-07-18T17:13:00.001-05:00

I’ve been debating with a Darwinist online about the validity of Haldane’s Dilemma. In short, the dilemma is for evolutionists, since Haldane calculated that there has not been enough time for Darwinian evolution to have taken place. Haldane, who was an evolutionist scientist from the 60’s calculated that only a single beneficial mutation happens every 300 generations. The rest of the random mutations are either neutral or negative. Random mutation is the only creative force possible for the Darwinists, so they are rightly disturbed by this dilemma. Apparently, one of the only scientists (ReMine) to have taken up Haldane’s work is a creationist! Darwinian scientists have simply tried to garble or ignore this devastating blow to Darwinism. My debate opponent has, like other Darwinists, only ignored Haldane’s Dilemma, and his only example for random mutations acting as a creative force has been a bacteria colony, which has survived on nylon as its only food source. Creation scientists have rebutted (several times) the claim that this nylon-eating bacteria proves evolution, but it is still the only example that even remotely resembles random mutations acting as a creative force. But Darwinian evolution requires trillions of complimentary random mutations building single-celled creatures up to humans.

The rest if the examples in science text books to prove that random mutations are the creative force of evolution are harmful mutations of sadly deformed animals. If you know a person that has a genetic disease from a mutation, you know that mutations are harmful...not proof for molecules-to-man evolution.

God created the world just like He said He did in Genesis 1 and 2.

You'll walk the plank fer that, Land-lubber!

2007-07-10T11:10:00.000-05:00

Does anyone remember the name Jim Hawkins? He’s the hero from Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island. I seem to remember images from my childhood of having seen a Disney production of the book, but these images have only come back bit by bit as I’ve recently been listening to the audio book. In light of having listened to the book, I need to find that movie and watch it again.

At one point in the book Jim gets entangled with the pirates and makes a promise to them not to run away from the buccaneers during a meeting with the good doctor. The doctor urges him to flee with him while escape was possible, but Jim refuses because of his promise. I found myself rooting for Jim to escape since this was probably his only chance. My own thoughts were, “Jim, you can escape. They’re only pirates! Your word does not bind you since they’re thieves.” But upon reflection I realized that Jim did the right thing. He honored his word even though the pirates were crooks and untrustworthy themselves.

My conclusion from this story is that the integrity of one’s word is not to whom a promise is given but to Truth. True character and integrity does not require one to justify your actions. It is instead the truthful fulfillment of one’s responsibilities, thoughts, and words.

What Did I Learn at CIY?

2007-07-02T17:13:00.000-05:00

Before our group left for CIY, my lovely bride gave everyone in the group two 3X5 cards for us to write prayer requests. My first card was a prayer request that God would teach me how to pray better, to listen to His voice, and to be an intercessor for others. My other prayer card was simply that I would be focused on others and not be selfish.

Wednesday night in the middle of CIY, the director of the conference, Nate, came up to me and asked me if I would be willing to participate in a powerful event for the youth. Now, the theme of the day was Injury, and throughout the day, we had taught the youth about how to handle hurts and pains with which they had struggled.

He explained to me that during the evening session, there would be six 4X8 foot sheets of Plexiglas around the auditorium. During the session, the youth would be invited to write their biggest hurts and pains in black marker on the Plexiglas sheets. At the end of the session, the sheets would be brought together on stage to make an isolation chamber of sorts, and the climax of the night would be to have someone stay inside the chamber all night and pray for the youth and their hurts. As the memory of my prayer cards resonated within me, I agreed to be the advocate.

It was a difficult and powerful time to be surrounded by the hurts and pains of 800 youth and adults. At first it was overwhelming, but my youth group and many others at CIY and beyond were praying for me. With the Lord’s help, I wrote down each injury on scrap paper and erased every bit of black marker on those walls. Each hurt was prayed for and brought before the Lord for 10 hours. I learned about grace, and forgiveness and the meaning of love. God taught me to be unselfish and that my problems are not worth complaining about. While these are not new concepts to me, they were embossed into my spirit. Other people are hurting, and God provided healing and hope through prayer.

While, I was not physically refreshed at 8AM for the start of the morning session, it brightened my morning and re-invigorated me when the youth began to file into the auditorium to offer words of appreciation and encouragement.

It was sad to me that I wrote down abandonment, betrayal, rejection, depression, and “problems with parents” enough times to abbreviate the words. My encouragement to the youth, and to those reading this blog is simply John 16:33, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” This is not our home, and when we have tribulation and troubles, we can smile knowing that the longing for our Heavenly home is a safe haven from the sufferings of this world.

CIY Elective class (Apologetics)

2007-06-27T08:47:00.000-05:00

I had the great privilege to teach the Apologetics: Design in God's Creation during the 2007 Colorado 1 CIY. Unfortunately, I did not have enough copies of my prepared notes for everyone who attended. I had thought I could post the document on my blog, but it only allows me to post pictures. So, if you or someone you know did not get a copy of the notes, but wants one, leave your email in a comment, and I'll email you the document.

#1 Movie in America

2007-06-26T10:29:00.000-05:00

Someone asked me this week if I was planning to see Evan Almighty. It’s supposed to be wholesome “family” entertainment. It’s supposed to be funny, and it’s supposed to contain some biblical phrases. I will probably eventually see it, but I do not plan to see it on the silver screen. I’ll probably wait until the library gets a copy, and then check it out.

This article from AIG tells a lot about how I feel about the movie.

http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/am/v2/n2/evan-almighty-review

Great CIY Conference

2007-06-25T11:02:00.000-05:00

We just got back from the Durango, Colorado CIY (Christ In Youth) summer conference last night. It was a little over 1000 miles back to Longview, TX, and it took 2 full days of driving. I'm a little tired of being cooped up in a van, but we did get to see some beautiful country (mostly in colorful Colorado) during the trip home. One of the highlights of the trip home was a snowball fight at a scenic overlook at the top of the Wolf Creek pass. Despite the protests of "No, you'll get Rocky Mountain Fever!" several of the youth and I drank from a fresh spring of melted snow during the same stop.

Thank you, all for your prayers while we were away. To those who were at CIY, thank you also for your prayers.

The Lord did some awesome work in the lives of a lot of youth. I'll post another article later about some of the unique work He did in my life during the conference.

Thank you, CIY, for your incredible ministry. You have some very talented people doing great work for the kingdom!

It's not MY nephew!

2007-06-14T11:09:00.000-05:00

It's pretty amazing how far PETA or other evolutionists will go to link chimps to humans.

After reading the article (you can click the picture to zoom in) what do you think of these 2 statements?

a) "Activists want to ensure that the apes don't wind up homeless..."

b) "Their food and veterinary bills run about $6800 a month."

Are you worshipping in a warehouse or a factory?

2007-06-11T08:25:00.000-05:00

If I owned a grape orchard, maybe I’d live in Italy or along the Columbia River. Either way, I’d want things to run smoothly. Who wouldn’t want to have highly qualified workers in your own personal vineyard? But it would be very frustrating to find that the workers were eating the produce rather than nourishing, increasing, and gathering the harvest. I think sometimes, God sees his “orchard” under-producing because the workers, while skillful, have grown content in a sedentary existence.

One of the missionaries that our church supports shared this analogy yesterday in reference to the American church. For too long, significant portions of the American church have been content to enjoy partaking in the fruit of the vineyard rather than nourishing, increasing, and gathering it. Obviously, not everyone is content to live a “Sunday Christian life,” but unfortunately, churches have become warehouses rather than factories.

Can Atheists morally Denounce Evil?

2007-06-04T16:24:00.000-05:00

It took me about a week to get through this debate staged in the form of 6 corresponding letters, but I found it fascinating. An atheist and a Christian sent "letters" back and forth discussing "whether or not Christianity has been good for people." When you get time, you should check it out. The links are not well done by the fact that after you finish reading each letter and its response, you have to go back near the beginning of the letter to find the next Part.

http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2007/mayweb-only/119-12.0.html

Find THAT guy!

2007-06-01T16:16:00.000-05:00

“If it’s ‘impossible’ to deport illegal aliens, how did we come to have so much specific information about them? I keep hearing they are Catholic, pro-life, hardworking, just dying to become American citizens, and will take jobs other Americans won’t. Someone must have talked to them to gather all this information. Let’s find that guy—he must know where they are!” —Ann Coulter

Wal-Mart Doesn't Accept Confederate Currency

2007-06-01T11:13:00.000-05:00

In our 21st century American culture, we are faced with the overwhelming desire to accumulate possessions. Capitalism has rationalized materialism. How should Christians live within the boundaries of our culture without living within the clutches of its prime influence?

About a week ago, a friend of mine at work told me that his parent’s house had burned down. They lost everything. It really hurt my heart to think that these people, who I have never met, had all of their belongings ripped catastrophically from them. My friend told me that his parent’s biggest loss, from their own point of view, was the death of their pets. Isn’t this true, though, that life’s most important treasures are relationships?

After reflecting, it has given an entire community a chance to give. The victims of this fire now have a testimony of grace from close friends and from people whom they’ve never met. Even more than the testimony, they have a chance to learn how to truly and practically trust God for their provision. The former materialist and extorter, Matthew writes in chapter 6:

19 "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also…25 "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? 28 "And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

I am convicted, to my shame, that my life is too influenced by the culture’s draw for the things of this world. Had it been my house that had burned, I can only imagine the pools of self-pity in which I would be swimming. But in this realization, I hope to live with a Heavenly perspective, since I’ll not be taking anything with me beyond the Pearly Gates anyway.

Randy Alcorn in his book, The Treasure Principle, puts it something like this: if you had lived in South Carolina in 1865 would you put your investment futures in Confederate currency or Union money? The south was on the verge of defeat, and as we know today, Wal-mart does not accept confederate money (although they’ll probably be accepting pesos soon…but that’s a different blog entry). Just like confederate currency, when the kingdom is fulfilled, today’s stuff, which we crave and horde, will have no value. (having said all of this, I would encourage you to keep an off-site computer backup of your important data in case a fire strikes your stuff.)

Home School Heaven

2007-05-29T16:35:00.000-05:00

One of the blogs that I frequent, voxday.blogspot.com, had a post about home schooling this week. Apparently, the liberals in America do not want anyone to home school because it takes our kids out of their "indoctrination centers" also known as public education. (NOTE: I do not believe that public school teachers are bad...some of our best friends teach in public schools, but so much of the curriculum that kids get today is driven by a radical liberal agenda.) But here's a quote from his blog that I heartily endorse:

If the feminist Left is so concerned about the problem of unpaid homeschooling mothers, there's an easy solution: give them the money that their school district would get if their kids were enrolled in the public school.

Sinking Ship

2007-05-29T10:57:00.000-05:00

Analogies can help people to understand a complex problem. The writer of the following article paints a good word picture:

http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=20870

I'm all for helping people in need, but the USA is sinking under the load of unmitigated immigration. In the long run, allowing illegal aliens to have amnesty will hurt everyone. The short term political gain compounds the problem for everyone.

Good Reading

2007-05-23T09:23:00.000-05:00

I wish I could write like this:

http://www.arn.org/blogs/index.php/2?author=10

In it, Roddy Bullock compares Darwinists to the literary character Ahab from Moby Dick. Bullock is exactly right in that Darwinists launch their harpoons at anyone mentioning creation, God, Intelligent Designer, design, or purpose. It's no wonder that schools, "scientific journals", and the media wilt under the pressure from these modern Ahabs to conform to Darwinist dogma. They're afraid they'll be hit with a lawsuit harpoon, or a bad press harpoon.

Voting in Vain

2007-05-18T13:27:00.000-05:00

Should Christians vote for whichever popular/famous Republican wins the nomination in an effort to keep Hillary from winning? Is it about voting for the lesser of 2 evils?

Should Christians consider "throwing away" their vote by voting for a third party that more closely resembles their beliefs?

I propose that Christians are throwing away their vote if they vote for an increasingly liberal and corrupt Republican party--with the exception of a dwindling few upright statesmen and stateswomen.

Our country "enjoyed" the power of a Republican presidency and a Republican majority in both the House and the Senate for 4 years! What Christian principles were advanced during this political "utopia"?

- We still face unlimited abortion
- The government has grown in size and intrusiveness
- Congress still spends more inflated fortunes than Clinton has had mistresses.
- Congress has corrupted itself with no term limits, and they simply legislate to stay in power.
- Public education has simply become liberal brainwashing rather than increasing critical thinking skills.
- We are entangled in more than 1 foreign war, each of which is looking increasingly quagmirish (to clarify, I am not against the war on terror, but the most costly war in history, WW2, only lasted 5 years...and these wars will soon exceed that. We need to finish them decisively without delay.)

What did the 8 year Clintonian hiatus gain?
-Two possibly conservative judges. Hopefully, they will prove to be more closely aligned with conservative/Constitutional principles than the previous supposedly conservative judges like O'Conner and Kennedy.
-No more domestic terrorist attacks.

Salvation is not found in politics. No matter who comes to power, God is in control. Perhaps the realization of another Clinton administration will rally the Christian conservatives to actually do something to change our culture from the inside.

While it won't save us, you can at least keep your integrity by voting for the Constitution Party!

Discrimination

2007-05-16T11:42:00.000-05:00

The only group of people that it is is politically correct to discriminate against (besides pro-lifers) are those who question Darwinian dogma...at least according to the mainstream liberal media.

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=55667

Intelligent Design stalwart Guillermo Gonzalez has been denied tenure at Iowa State university despite the fact that he far exceeded the minimum requirements.

http://www.evolutionnews.org/2007/05/its_a_sad_day_in.html

Score 1 for the Good Guys

2007-05-16T10:13:00.000-05:00

Planned Parenthood are the bad guys; yet they want to sue a young lady for exposing their blatant criminal negligence.

Check out his article:

http://www.lifenews.com/state2286.html

Pray for Ms. Rose as her courageous actions exposed an obviously underreported crime. And pray that abortion will be forced into extinction.

[Update]
Here's another good article regarding the same situation:
http://www.jewishworldreview.com/michelle/malkin.php3

Final Score

2007-05-15T08:02:00.000-05:00

Pull-ups
---------------------
Spiderman 15
Batman 16
Hulk 21
Superman 23

Push-ups
--------------
Spiderman 44
Batman 55
Hulk 88
Superman ?? (The counters were in awe, and lost count)

In the end a second competition was established to determine the winner of the push-up championship, and the Hulk was declared victorious for holding the half push-up pose the longest.

Better Battle Plan

2007-05-14T17:22:00.000-05:00

A few nights ago, Ray Comfort and Kirk Cameron challenged the world that they could prove the existence of God using only science and no appeal to faith. While these men are remarkable evangelists, they stepped into unknown waters by agreeing to a debate format while trying to prove this age-old question of the existence of God. Had I been tasked with helping the men to format their “battle” plan for the debate, I would have had them follow these guidelines instead of the ones they used.

The design argument is a good one. It is compelling, but Comfort did not go deep enough or convincing enough to build a compelling case. There is inherent design in the universe. He should have said, “Since there is a limited time available to deliver this message, I will give you an abbreviated list of the features in the universe that exhibit design features consistent with complex, purposefully built machine. By themselves, each example is reason to expect a creator, but together they are powerful and compelling motivation to seek this creator.

Symbiosis when two or more organisms cooperate in order to survive (hundreds of known examples exist on the planet)
Symmetry – Nothing in random, purposeless, unguided processes suggest that symmetry would be expected in living organisms.
The existence of the mind, rationalism, and logic suggest a designer.
The fact that humans can recognize beauty beyond reproductive benefits compels a designer.
Humans exhibit love, mercy, philanthropy, and pleasure. Why should any of these exist in a purposeless universe?
Irreducible complexity. Molecular machines exist that cannot function with any fewer parts. In other words, life was designed with exact specifications. The famous flagellum tail is an example of this. Many improper rebuttals and flawed logic have led atheists to believe that they have defeated this argument. No doubt you will hear one from the other side shortly.
The finely-tuned character of the universe. Were gravity any stronger or weaker, by even the slightest margin, life could not exist. The strong nuclear force exhibits exactly the right amount of force for life. The size ratio of the proton to neutron ensure that life is possible. Were neutrons the same size, then all protons would decay into neutrons, which would end all hopes for life. The electromagnetic force cannot be varied in any measure or life would be impossible. The cosmologic constant is perfectly suited to life. If it were different by even the slightest percentage…you guessed it, life would not exist.
The ubiquitous examples of golden ratios in biology, astronomy, chemistry, and other observable sciences indicate that the preferential use of this ratio has purpose. That humans recognize that the ratio is aesthetically pleasing is fascinating.
The Earth’s perfect location to sustain life is a powerful argument for design. The earth is exactly the right distance from the sun for liquid water to exist. The proximity of the sun in conjunction with the earth’s proximity to her own moon produces the tides, which oxygenates the oceans and allows aquatic life. The earth’s atmospheric air is surprisingly perfect for breathable air, controlled combustion, controlled flight, photosynthesis, condensation, evaporation, and UV protection. On top of that, the earth’s atmospheric content is transparent. We can see through it to see each other and beyond it to see the heavens. This is a profound design feature.
That humans can understand mathematics and chemistry at an elementary level allows us to measure and comprehend the universe implying that we were meant to study and understand our environment. But chemistry and mathematics, while understandable at an elementary level is also fascinatingly complex. There is no inherent reason why the universe should have developed mathematics and chemistry at all, let alone in a manner that humans can comprehend them.
The existence of information is unexpected in an atheist universe. Information must come from a source higher than the measured scope. Specified complexity is another way to refer to the presence of information in our universe. It’s not just ordered. It’s not just complex. It’s ordered and complex in a way that has meaning and purpose. Naturalism cannot explain this.

For the atheists, any one of these arguments would be enough to show the existence of an all-powerful creator. So by just having a naturalistic argument for 1 item does not disprove the existence of God. Even if an atheistic mechanism that works does not disprove the idea that God created it and keeps it in motion.

To answer the question of suffering, evil, and even cancer, the argument has to go to another level by recognizing that sin has infected the universe, sin that Adam and Eve brought into existence when they disobeyed God. This appeal does require the use of the Bible to have a full and complete understanding.

Now, for me to withstand the arguments from the atheists, I should spend some time on the talkorgins website. It seems Comfort and Cameron neglected, to their shame, this necessary tactic to excel in the debate format. It does not make their purpose, passion, or message any less real, they just didn't succeed as well as they could have with a better battle plan.

Atheist's arguments...pretty empty after all

2007-05-10T11:11:00.000-05:00

Last night the debate between Ray Comfort and Kirk Cameron vs. the atheists was aired on ABC News Nightline. I commented on the portion of the debate that was posted on the website yesterday. Today I intend to rebut the atheist’s arguments in this post.

The atheists in the debate were introduced as Brianand Kelly. The impression that these unknown, non-scientists could overwhelm the star duo and professional evangelists Kirk Cameron and Ray Comfort, left the audience with the notion that anyone can disprove God using a little logic.

As a young earth creationist I was very disappointed in the Cameron/Comfort duo’s “scientific” arguments and (lack of) preparation to face atheistic counter-arguments. You can see more of my comments in yesterday’s post, Unprepared.

As promised in yesterday’s post, I’ll point out the flaws in the atheist’s argument.

Brian went first and said that the builder/painter used as a key element of Comfort’s argument can be called to ask if they built/painted something. My response would be to them, “Could you please get anyone from the Ming dynasty (builders of the Great Wall) or Michelangelo on the phone or at least their email addresses.” If he appealed to records and history to prove they existed and produced their masterpieces, then just as easily one could appeal to the sound historical legitimacy of Genesis 1. While Genesis is considered sacred by Christians, it has never been shown to be false in historical matters.

While this is not a scientific argument, Brianlamented that Christianity allowed for the possibility that hardened criminals and even Hitler could be in Heaven as long as they asked for forgiveness of sin and accepted Christ as Savior. Isn’t this the beauty of God’s grace? Jesus’ payment for sins was enough to forgive anything you’ve done. If Hitler can be saved (which, no evidence exists that he ever repented) then you can too. Your sins can be 4GiVn.

Brian went on to call his opponents anti-scientists. This is a common tactic by atheists, because it makes Christians appear to denounce scientific principles. Brian's arguments at the point have been debunked by numerous creation scientists

- “The eye is wired backwards.” If the eye was not designed as it is, you would
be blind. The eye was perfectly designed to exist in an environment that is
bombarded with ultraviolet radiation. If, as perceived the eye were to be
rewired forwards, the UV light would blind
you.
- “Male nipples.” It could be just as easily argued that this is design efficiency. The same tissues in unborn humans exist before the reproductive organs take shape. So the existence of common tissue in unborn children is a feature of efficient development.
- “Snake Legs.” The loss of snake legs is questionable science in the first place. Secondly, is the loss of information really supposed to explain the massive GAIN in
complexity and information required for Darwinian evolution? The loss of legs/genetic information is better explained by a creation model, where we live
a once-perfect world that is continually getting worse through the compounded
effects of sin. (question to Brian – Can you give me even one example of an
organism gaining NEW genetic information, which increases complexity and
function, exclusively by natural processes as described by molecules to man
Darwinism?)

Surprisingly, and naively, Brian spins a yarn that atheists are more philanthropic and have contributed more good to the world than religious folk. I may do another entire posting about this one, but in short, Brian would be hard-pressed to prove that atheists do more good for the world than even one of these organizations: Compassion International, World Vision, Amor Ministries, Southern Baptist Missions, Interfatih Hospitality Network…The list could go on and on.

Lastly, Brian uses the word good and compassionate when referring to atheists. By what standard exactly can an atheist measure goodness? They have no reason to be compassionate. To an atheist, compassion is logically contrary to the idea of evolutionary doctrine. The weak and unfortunate simply pollute the gene pool and slow our evolutionary progress. Hitler’s entire genocidal program was motivated by a fully developed Darwinian conclusion.

Brian's partner, Kelly then took the stand and really offered only an amateurish rebuttal of the Christian duo. She redefined science as it is understood by materialists today rather than the root of the word which Comfort used. Her definition excludes anything beyond materialism. Thus, scientists who ascribe to this definition exclude any conclusion that natural science cannot explain (mind, love, beauty, design, reason).

Kelly mocked Comfort’s argument that one’s conscience guides them by suggesting that no one ever need to be taught anything if a conscience is real. The atheists suggested that Comfort is only a Christian because of his culture. If he’d been born in India, they claim, he’d be Hindu. But the search for something higher than ourselves is a powerful argument for the existence of God. He placed within each of us the desire to worship Him. Christianity is a record of this, and other world religions are misguided efforts to fill the need for Christ and His forgiveness of sin.

The only one of her other comments that is even worth disputing is her claim that, “Hitler was a devout Catholic.” This is absolute rubbish. Hitler, Stalin, and Pol Pot were all atheist mass murderers, who were powerfully influenced by the anti-Christian conclusions of Darwinism.

Unprepared

2007-05-09T16:47:00.000-05:00

I just watched the ABCNEWS.com internet version of the debate between the Christians and the atheists. Dishearteningly, the atheists won the debate...not because they are right, but because Ray Comfort and Kirk Cameron made a bold claim (We will prove, scientifically, beyond a shadow of doubt that there is a God without resorting to faith) and delivered little philosophical proof.

Overall, the debate was amateurish since neither side was particularly compelling. The Comfort/Cameron duo were passionate and I could resonate with their message. Having said this they should have spent some time reading the materialistic diatribes of the talk.origins.com propaganda so they would be prepared to answer the atheists. In the Art of War, Sun Tzu said:

So it is said that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you will win hundred times in hundred battles. If you only know yourself, but not your opponent, you win one and lose the next. If you do not know yourself or our enemy, you will always lose.

Comfort/Cameron failed to know what the atheists were going to defend with, and they failed to deliver on their bold claim. It is a bold claim that has been debated since...before the time of Noah. Unsurprisingly, they could not deliver.

While my public speaking skills are unpolished and naive, I wish the passionate Christian duo would have asked me for some tips on where to look for information to present. They could have checked out my blog favorites for VOLUMES of information regarding the scientific evidence that supports scripture. They lost the debate before it started since their bold claim needed a starting point. The atheist team pointed this out on a particularly embarrassing exchange for the Christians when they said something like, "You promised scientific evidence, but you said that God is outside of time and the universe. You broke your own rules. We believe the universe is infinite, you believe that God is infinite" Cameron/Comfort sat stunned for a few seconds before Cameron repeated that "...we believe..." to which the atheists responded, "Well, we believe..." It was appalling to me that when the moderator asked Cameron/Comfort if they would like to respond to the atheists, both men looked perplexed and unwilling to engage in debate by saying simply, "I think people can figure it out."

I loved their passion, but I was disappointed with the results.

In the next post, I'll argue against the atheist's claims.

[Update]

A more qualified debater for the Christians would have been the much-maligned and wrongfully imprisoned Kent Hovind. His powerful logic and experience as a debater would have benefited the Christian side of the debate. His brash demeanor and keen reasoning would have put the atheists in their place.

It depends

2007-05-08T13:41:00.000-05:00

Is it okay to lie (say something that you know to be untrue) if you think the lie will save your life?

Post your comments using sound reasoning and Bible references if possible.

The gift of trouble

2007-05-07T08:03:00.000-05:00

Being the perfectly organized person that I am, I've crammed my read-through-the-Bible-in-a-year daily devotions into 16 months...and counting. Renee and I started this together on January 1, 2006, and after about a week of looking back and forth for the the Bible, I decided to let her use the NIV version of our One Year Bile, and I picked up the Living Bible translation. It read very easy, but I've always got in the back of my mind as I read, "I wonder what the REAL Bible says in this passage."

So, part of the reading for today...I mean December 11 was Amos 4. God says, " 'I sent you hunger, but it did no good; you still would not return to me. I ruined your crops...I sent a blight and mildew on your farms and your vineyards; the locusts ate your figs and olive trees. And still you would not return to me...I sent you plagues...I killed your lads in war and drove away your horses...And yet you refused to come. I destroyed some of your cities...And still you won't return to me', says the Lord."

I know that sometimes, I get caught in the trap that if life is comfortable, then I must be doing what God wants. This passage just really struck me for some reason this morning that God gave them trouble in an effort to renew his relationship with his people. The NIV translation of Amos 4:6 says, "I gave you empty stomachs..."

I hope our country, people, church can return to God without needing the gift of trouble to turn our hearts.

The fool says...

2007-05-04T11:17:00.000-05:00

The fool has said in his heart, "There is no God". Psalm 14:1

Yet on ABC News next week a pair of atheists will debate with Kirk Cameron and Ray Comfort whether the existence of God is a fact or not. It's supposed to be broadcast at 1PM Central and 10:30 PM Central.

I'm not sure what either side will say, but check back here next Thursday after watching it to make your comments (and read mine!). It wouldn't hurt to pray for the Christian pair as they prepare a cogent argument.

Since ABC is on the boycott list (Via Walt Disney, who owns it) the writer of this blog does not recommend that you support any of their sponsors during this broadcast, but it should be interesting to watch.

Even if you do not decide to watch, think of the people (co-workers, classmates, friends...) around you who have been deceived by the evolutionary mantra that there is no scientific need for God. And then check back here for postings and the links at the bottom that will help equip you to counter the dogmatic evolutionary mantra.

Changes

2007-05-03T16:56:00.000-05:00

We have had to make some changes in our lives recently. "Had to" may be too strong a phrase except that we feel strongly about this issue, and we have chosen to make some changes. They have not been burdensome, but they are obvious nonetheless.

We bought the Planned Parenthood boycott list from www.fightpp.org. For those who do not know, Planned Parenthood is the world's largest supporter of abortion. The list is filled with corporations that sponsor the most effective killing machine in history, and we have chosen not to purchase their products anymore. Not only that, but we have even written their executives letters to let them know that this movement is going to have an impact on their sales. I would encourage everyone to at least check into the boycott and measure its effectiveness for yourselves.

The hardest change has been finding competing products to Johnson and Johnson (since they are on the list) since they produce SO MUCH stuff. Perhaps this bit of inconvenience will help to curb our connection to the material world and help us fight the acidic effects of materialism.

FYI...this is the first posting on the issue of abortion of what promises to be a common theme here. The best thing about having one's own blog - I can write about whatever I want. :-)

Prayer

2007-05-03T08:40:00.000-05:00

So what is prayer?

National Day of Prayer

2007-05-03T08:31:00.000-05:00

In 1988, president Reagan instituted the first Thursday in May as the National Day of Prayer. So what does that mean for us, as Americans? as Christians? Is this a day for us to get out our "wish lists" and begin to ask away? Does God set aside His providential responsibilities on the first Thursday of May to more easily listen to the extra supplications made from the United States? Perhaps, it is simply a reminder of the words in James 1:

16 Don't be deceived, my dear brothers. 17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

Let's all be thankful in our prayers today as we remember that the Creator of the universe has opened a means of communication with us.

First post

2007-05-02T08:50:00.000-05:00

Where should I start? The blog's name: 4GiVn.

I hope through all my posts that any visitors will not perceive me to think I am better or "looking down" on anyone. I am simply a sinner that has been forgiven by the grace of God through the sacrifice of Jesus.

And maybe through it all some visitors will be encouraged to grow in their faith.

Be sure to check out my grandmother's blog for some brilliant poetry and keen insight.