OREGON SCHOOL SHOOTING REVEALS AMERICA'S DEEPEST NEED

Umpqua Community College alumnus Donice Smith (L) is embraced after she said one of her former teachers was shot dead, near the site of a mass shooting at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon, October 1, 2015. STEVE DIPAOLA/REUTERS

fROM THE wEB:  http://www.newsweek.com/active-shooter-reported-umpqua-community-college-oregon-378758 

I don't usually write a blog post, but yesterday's news is quite troubling for our nation, and I just can't keep quiet.  Look at all the pain, broken hearts, death, and destruction.  It all started long before that young hate-filled young man got a gun and went to the school.  But, like a volcanic eruption, everything poured out yesterday.  The details only show us the problem - if we'll look at it honestly.

Our president and many liberals are quick to declare an answer to these things - gun control.  Conservatives respond saying that's not the answer.  While it isn't the answer, the real answer is something that neither side is saying.  There IS an answer!  And this particular shooting reveals it as the news of what happened comes out.

Before I get to that answer, let me explain what happened (as I understand it).  The gunman came in and asked "Christians" to stand.  Those who did were killed!  That should tell us quite a bit.  There are a lot of people saying that this guy had a heart consumed with hate!  And that hate was and is directed toward Christians!  Yesterday's events reveal the hate in our hearts toward Christ and His followers.

That hate is EVIL.  Evil is the antithesis to Christianity.  What we need in this country is to return to Christianity.  We need to stop being atheistic, and start acknowledging the God of the Universe.  We need to stop being secular, and start being truthful.  We need to stop being arrogantly anti-Christian, and start examining the Bible for its truth again.  We need to stop avoiding prayer, and start spending time praying.  We need God in our hearts, not evil!  We need a love that runs deeper than anything WE can conjure on our own.  We need grace, not guns.  

Sin is destructive

I'm all for self-defense and the 2nd Amendment.  But if we, as a society, would embrace Christian values more and secular values less, there would be fewer people running around angry, hate-filled, and hurting.  Sin is destructive.  Sin filled the gunman's heart.  Sin fills the hearts of all who deny God, Jesus Christ, and the Bible.  Sin makes fools of man.  "The fool says in his heart, 'There is no God.' "  (Psalm 14:1).  But the Bible also says that secularism (trusting in our OWN hearts) is sin (Proverbs 28:26).  The Bible teaches us to trust in God - that means to follow Him, seek Him, obey Him, and want what He wants for us.  We can't do this on our own - life, that is.  We can't turn our country back to the "good ole USA" on our own.  We need God's grace and help.  How can that happen if we won't even acknowledge that He is the answer or that HE even exists?

Our nation is plagued by selfishness  

That is sin as well.  We want sex when, where, and however we want it, and no one better say anything to the contrary.  We want infanticide to be a right.  We want to kill our cops, embrace our enemies, and treat our defenders as national enemy #1 when they leave the military.  We are a long way from being "one nation under God."  

Main Stream Media Hates Christians

Hating Christians is NOT being reported by the Main Stream Media.  They want guns gone, but they don't want knees bent, hearts changed, or God honored here in our nation.  They, and their elitist crowd of intellectual, power-broker cohorts, want a country where Christianity is destroyed.  They want all mention of God removed from the public eye.  They want kids taught in schools of secular thought.  They want parents removed from the process so these kids aren't "infected" with Christian truth.  Then we are flabbergasted that such children could possibly not know right from wrong and do such violent things.  Gun control isn't the answer - these kids can make bombs (just ask the teachers and administrators in Texas who thought that's what a kid had done!).

We NEED Christ

When our nation returns to Christ, we will find far fewer of these and similar crimes across our land.  Christ died to clean our hearts of sin.  When we share that truth with others, their hearts can be cleaned of the sin they hold. The ability to deal with sin will be renewed when that happens, because with the return to Christ, we'll understand what sin does to a person, and we'll work to stop it in them before it grows so great they explode in a wave of violence, death, and destruction such as happened yesterday.  Loving one another will be the norm, not defensiveness and hatred.  Hope and trust are found in the Lord, not in politics.  Where the Lord is, peace is.  Not in secularism and selfish humanism.  

The answer is something for all of us - individually - to consider.  "Will I follow the God of the Bible and trust His Son, Jesus Christ, to lead MY life?"  When enough of us say "YES" to that question, and begin to do it, the tide will turn in our nation.  Everything will change for the better.  Everything!  God will once again bless the USA!  He promises to do so in the Bible!

And that's the answer, As I See It.

I welcome your respectful comments.  Please share this and pass it on!

INVERTING RIGHT AND WRONG

I know it's been quite a while since my last post.  I've been extremely busy taking care of family - vacations, projects, and many other things.  I've also been helping our church with our Vacation Bible School - by leading it.  I am Bi-vocational - at least I have another part-time job as well to supplement our income - and have also been busy during "down-times" with that.  I'm back today, taking time out of other needed things to post this.  I only hope it makes someone think about their position.  Nevertheless, things have gotten to the point that I need to "vent" on some things, and so I must post this - As I See It.

Morality in America is inverted, and it has been for quite some time.  People are posting the craziest things on Facebook, the MSM (Main Stream Media) reports from the most inverted value system I've ever seen, and our governmental leaders are more out of touch with reality than ever before.  Today, I just want to publish a bullet list of these inversions.

• A marine defends himself and others under fire by returning fire on a Muslim extremist seeking to kill them.  He is under investigation and threatened with imprisonment for firing a weapon on a military installation. He is a field grade officer charged with leading and caring for his men and women.
• A protected lion is killed and the world wants his killer caught, extradited, and punished while an entire business is thriving based on the murder, dismemberment, and sale of body parts is protected by MSM and liberal congressional representatives.
• The police are encouraged and honored for their "undercover sting operations" against organized crime mobs, drug rings, etc., while a citizen's group is denigrated as "biased" for conducting its own "undercover sting operation" revealing indisputable proof that criminal conduct is taking place daily in a taxpayer-funded business that sells baby body parts for profit.  
• Police officers who, in the line of duty, have to physically take down a criminal that will not submit are considered racist if the criminal is black and the cop is white.  
• Police officers who, in the line of duty, must use deadly force to apprehend a criminal that is black, are called "killer cops," while nothing is said in the MSM when a "cop killer" uses deadly force to resist apprehension.
• License and Liberty are now synonymous, meaning that freedom (liberty) guaranteed by the Constitution offers complete legal, social, and governmental protection to all who seek an immoral lifestyle (license) regardless of who it may offend, and that protection will include the removal of all who protest for any reason.  This is done through the IRS, FBI, MSM, SCOTUS, POTUS, HSA, BATF, and politically correct liberal professors throughout our land.  
• Criminals have guns, politicos have people with guns to protect them from criminals, and citizens may not defend themselves from neither - the criminal or the overpowering politico.

And the list goes on.  Those in favor of these inversions are also in favor of these perversions.  Our very nation's foundation, the Constitution, is threatened by the ideologies that are behind these inversions.  That, in itself, is the most dangerous of inversions today, with one exception.

• The Bible-believing Christian is now considered as dangerous to our nation as a Muslim Extremist, if not more so - a belief held by those who support the inversions mentioned above.  Why?
• Because the Bible-believer has a moral foundation not found in the immoral, godless, inverted beliefs of others.
• Because the Bible-believer will vote and stand for right and wrong, constitutionally based policies, and demand justice in the case of these inversions.  This threatens the agenda of these liberal, godless, immoral power-hungry people.
• Because the Bible-believer offers a real remedy through peaceful means as the gospel demands.  This is effective beyond the wildest imaginations of the power-hungry, immoral liberals.  Therefore, they must be ostracized, outlawed, and outcast before they actually can influence the masses under the control and sway of the liberal MSM, politicos, and educators.

Ronald Regan's Supreme Court nominee, Robert Bork, is quoted as saying, "A society deadened by a smothering network of laws while finding release in moral chaos is not likely to be either happy or stable."  He has hit the nail on the head, and explains what is happening in America today.  He also hints at the answer.

I was asked the other day what I thought was wrong with America.  I was asked by someone who is very conservative - but NOT a Bible-believer.  My answer was simple: We have removed God from the American Marketplace.  Too many people no longer trust the Bible, God, or Jesus Christ.  Instead, each does what is right in his own eyes, thinking that freedom is license to serve self at all costs.  But God says, "Righteousness exalts a nation, But sin is a reproach to any people." Proverbs 14:34 (NKJV)  If we will not acknowledge the righteousness set forth by God, we will become a nation that sins in the sight of God - and we will be come a reproach to all people.  That is why "our enemies no longer fear us and our friends no longer trust us."  We have left the God who has blessed us, and we expect Him to continue to bless us for leaving Him.  "The fool says in his heart, 'There is no God.'" (Psalms 14:1; 53:1).  

Because America has inverted its allegiance to the One True God and Savior of Mankind, America can no longer help but invert its understanding of right and wrong.  Each person will do what is right in his own eyes, having no understanding of the consequences.  Unless we return to the foundation of justice, mercy, Truth, and eternity found in the Bible, we will only drift further from sanity.  That's America As I See It.

THE TWISTED GOSPEL OF "IDENTITY" LOGIC AND BIOTECHNOLOGY

R. Albert Mohler, Jr., this morning on his "Briefing," discussed two articles in the New York Times: 1) The New Girl in School: Transgender Surgery at 18 and 2) Rachel Dolezal, in Center of Storm, is Defiant: I Identify as Black


Mohler wisely shares how these stories are linked. He points his listeners to the idea that in the case of the transgender, their "identity" supersedes their biology. The same is true in cases of racial "identity" as in Rachel Dolezal's case. The difference right now is social acceptability. Sexual identity that runs counter to biology is acceptable. Racial identity that runs counter to biology is not. But that may be changing. The logic of both are the same - and that logic is a fallacy that goes back to the Bible. It is a twist on the gospel and it is evidence of the fallen nature of humanity in need of the true salvation that can only come from the Divine Transformation God provides to the Believer through His Holy Spirit at the point of faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. Please, let me explain.

The Beginning
When Adam and Eve were tempted in the Garden of Eden, they were deceived into believing that God somehow was withholding something good: the knowledge of good and evil. Satan convinced Eve to eat the fruit which would bring this knowledge to her. It did, indeed. It revealed to her that she was not good, but evil, having disobeyed her creator. Not to be undone or left alone in her fallen state, she convinced the only other person alive, her partner, to join her by also eating the fruit. When they were both aware of their sin and nakedness, they hid from God.

And hiding from God is what these who hold to "Identity" logic do. They refuse to obey God, accept God's authority, or live by the "identity" God gave them as man or woman, black or white (or any other race one wants to shed). Identity logic states that with modern technology, what is biological need not be undone. Humanity can manipulate what God has created. Genetic research allows genetic manipulation and can make a man become woman, a pale-skinned person become darker, etc. Humanity, hiding from God, insists that there is no accountability for this rebellion, for they are so hidden from God in their hearts, that they declare God to be dead. In reality, it is THEY who are dead to God. They cannot respond to Him in any way; they cannot see Him, hear Him, observe His hand in creation, etc. They are separated from God.

The Gospel of God and Jesus Christ
The gospel says that mankind is a sinner. Everyone is a sinner. "All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God" (Rom 3:23). And "the wages of sin is death" (Rom 6:23). But "God is not willing that any should perish, but come to repentance" (2Pe 3:9) and so He has given the "gift of eternal life in Jesus Christ" (Rom 6:23). The problem is that with repentance comes belief in Jesus Christ as Lord (John 3:16). Lostness, death, judgment, and ultimately eternal condemnation and separation from God comes from unbelief and unwillingness to allow God's authority over our lives (John 3:18). When one DOES believe, one is transformed from being a sinner, separated from God, to being a child of God, eternally united with Him through Jesus Christ (2Corinthians 5:17). That transformation is important - and Satan has usurped it in the lies of "Identity" logic.

The Lie
To repent is to recognize that something is not right, and needs to be changed. The twist on the gospel is that Satan has substituted our understanding of what is "not right." He uses it for many situations, and will use it for more and more as our society listens and believes his lies. These two cases today reveal that some people believe their desires for the same sex is not right and the transformation that will heal it is sexual transformation surgery.

The gospel says repentance from same sex desires, given to the Lord, can be transformed into opposite sex (heterosexual) desires. Likewise, when one enjoys and embraces another race's culture, as in the case of Rachel Dolezal, the thing needing transformed is her "racial identity" and the transformation can be brought about by a darkening of her skin color, rather than repenting of not embracing her God-given race and simply living in a different culture than that of her childhood. The REAL transformation needed by those of either of these two cases is the transformation that God, not biology, can provide. And that is how Biotechnology provides a false transformation and so a false Gospel.

 
And that's how "Identity Logic" and Biotechnology are teamed up to present humanity with a twisted Gospel, dooming all who fall prey to its deception to an eternity of real hell - God's judgment for not trusting Him when they should have. God loves us all, but not all love Him back! And that's the twist of the gospel As I See It.

May the Lord shine His perfect light on you today. If you would like to know more about how the Lord can save YOU, please feel free to comment or email me. I'd be glad to help you.

POSITIVE BIBLICAL PROOF THAT LIBERAL THEOLOGY IS SATANIC

I chose that title to get your attention. Since you are reading this, it must have done its job.

I know it sounds extremist to declare liberal theology to be satanic.  I must explain what I mean, and the reader would be wise and patient to hear me out before casting this thought aside. 

I'll start my explanation with a simple truth: the Bible is absolutely true on every count, in every way, for all time.  It is without error; it cannot fail; and it is the supreme authority on all things spiritual, moral, and psychological.  It was written by our Creator, and the words were first told to Godly men who were faithful to pen the words according to the Creator's instructions - with diligence and without mistake.  Of all ancient documents, it is the most tested, copied, verified, and unfortunately it is also vilified by those who refuse to accept its veracity and authority.  And that is why I believe liberalism to be satanic.

In the first encounter between man and Satan, the very successful ploy of Satan to lead man astray, as recorded in the Bible in Genesis 3:1-8, was to convince Eve that God didn't really mean what He said; the consequences wouldn't be as bad as God said; and in fact, God was withholding what was good from her: the knowledge of good and evil.  And what a deception it was then.  It still is the deception that more and more are falling for - that God didn't mean what He wrote in the Bible.  The problem is, according to the liberals, our interpretations are askew.  Satan said that to bring the fall - and people are falling for it by the millions today.

R. Albert Mohler, Jr., in his "Briefing" this morning (see link below), highlighted a recent development in "evangelical Christianity."  Tony Campolo, a left-leaning evangelical, has finally come out in favor of the church changing its position on gay marriage, encouraging churches to embrace as members people who are "married" to same sex partners.  This falls in direct contradiction to the clear teaching of the Bible in several places, both Old and New Testament.  In order to make such a claim, there must be some change in theological position regarding the authority, clarity, and content of the Bible - the Word of God.  Theological liberalism has long doubted these things.  Why?  It is Satan's argument from the beginning.

The destruction to the church, the marginalization of the church, the authority of the church is weakened at its core when the church turns from the truth to follow the lies of Satan.  Those lies are expressed as theological liberalism in all forms and doctrines that deviate from the clear teachings of scripture.

So Satan is behind theological liberalism, As I See It.  What do you think?  Your comments are always welcome.  Post them here or on Facebook. 

http://www.albertmohler.com/2015/06/09/the-briefing-06-09-15/

3) Tony Campolo affirms gay couples in the church, continuing in predictable trajectory

Tony Campolo: For the Record, TonyCampolo.org (Tony Campolo)

Holding It Together, Sojourners (Tony Campolo)

Homosexuality: Campolos discourse on their disagreement, Calvin College Chimes (Nathan Vanderklippe)

IDEOLOGY FUELS MORALITY (OR IMMORALITY)

With the oral arguments over the same-sex marriage case now concluded, it comes time for our nine justices to discuss, digest, and deliberate the case before issuing a ruling (and dissent) in late June. Never before has it been so imperative that Christians pray to the Lord to plead the case before the eternal Supreme Court to which even our American Court must answer for its rulings.

Having said that, I would like to comment on the moral state of our nation. It is moving downward so rapidly, I hesitate to use the term "spiral" any longer. The trajectory of moral decline in America is, as I have said before, like a snowball rolling down a mountain. Taking the inclined plane of the mountain side, and the force of sinful, immoral gravity pulling on the snowball, more and more mass accumulates along the way, making the whole ball have more momentum every day it moves downward. It is consuming the entire nation. Liberal voices everywhere praise its progress, while the communities of our nation are eroding from its destructive force.

And this is not new. These things have happened before in human history – though not over the issue of gay marriage. Moral decline comes in many forms. America's includes the declines that many other nations have faced in history – a secularism, diminished view of the sanctity of life, reticence to heed to ethical concerns in research and scientific applications, educational systems used to indoctrinate children out of any faith at all, politicians willing to do whatever the highest bidder wishes, and an anti-faith attitude. Places like France (its bloody Revolution during the turn of the 19^th century), Russia with the deposition of the Czar in 1917, Germany under Hitler, Italy under Mussolini, and China under Mao Tse Tung. That is more recent history. Throughout the centuries of humanity, these things have happened.
And while this is not new, I hope to cause a few of my readers to pause and consider the effects of their liberal, immoral, anti-Christian ideology. And to be honest, it is ideology that fuels this American Revolution now underway. When a person jettisons the idea that there is a God to whom he is accountable, he is "free" to do as he pleases with no regard to consequences – for there are none. But that person gambles with eternity. When a family of people hold to this same idea, the family becomes a force for the community to deal with. When a community becomes indoctrinated this way, society at large, and the state specifically must deal with it. When a state is filled with communities, filled with families, filled with people who hold this view, the nation must deal with it. When the nation is filled with states filled with communities filled with families filled with people – it is truly a problem of global consequences. We consider the threat of global terrorism and those nations who sponsor it to be a global issue. It is the ideology of those nations that fuels terrorist actions. We are truly fighting a global war of world-views. And people die in that war!

I intended to try to articulate the moral state of the United States today. Before our Supreme Court is the question, "what consequences will be encountered by our nation if we adopt this policy of a 'fundamental right to gay marriage'?" While that is not the stated question of the case, it is the question that some of our justices probed during oral arguments yesterday. The answer will be very revealing. But so is the spin put on the view of America by those who want most to influence its outcome – our press corps. There are those on both sides of the issue, and their biases in polling and reporting are evident. I offer you two cases in point:

1. USA Today: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2015/04/28/audio-transcript-supreme-court-gay-marriage-oral-arguments/26516157/ . This link takes you to a page that is supposed to be an audio transcript of the oral arguments. However, the links to hear it are pictures of Americans who are demonstrating in favor of making same-sex marriage legal – completely! There isn't one picture on the page of the opposing view!
2. Fox News: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015/04/28/supreme-court-hears-historic-same-sex-marriage-arguments/ . This link takes you to a page that is supposed to be a fair and balanced report of the oral arguments. However, there is, at the top of the page, a video link regarding the spin of the 2016 candidates – and that video link begins with one of the same pictures as is found on the USA Today link above – of people demonstrating in favor of the legality of same-sex marriage. While the discussion below highlights the uncertain direction of the decision, it also highlights the conservative portion of the oral arguments. By that, I mean the arguments as to why the High Court should NOT rule in favor of making same-sex marriage a fundamental, constitutional right.

Biases are clear. These reports leave out the demonstrators from the right and highlight the abundance of demonstrators on the left. However, there were as many of the right demonstrators outside the Supreme Court building as the left.

But the moral change in our nation is also clear. In an effort to be unbiased, LifewayResearch.com reports (http://www.mbcpathway.com/2015/04/28/gay-marriage-gap-widens-for-evangelicals-culture/) that morality seems to be moved by contact with those who are already well into the new movement. The graph below should help you understand what I mean. When a person has a friend who is "gay", he is more likely to want it to be OK in society than those who have no such "gay" friends. To me, this begs the question: have we gotten to the point where happiness supersedes all other sensibilities?

There is another sign of moral change: a departure from faith. People in the pews do not accept the views of the people in the pulpit. Ed Stetzer is quoted (in the MBCPathway link above): "Church leaders have traditionally been seen as the champions of all things moral in society," Stetzer said. "As public perceptions of morality change, pastors find themselves in an increasingly unpopular position." Pastors were very influential at bringing in the 1^st Amendment before ratification of the Constitution could happen. Today, pastors are being marginalized rapidly. Their influence is waning quickly. When pastors become the only people of faith, the "fundamental transformation of America" promised with the election of President Obama will be complete. America will be secularized, and morality will be defined by the whim of the state. Life will have no meaning, and death will all around us all the time. We will be socialized – in ideology AND in practice. And I believe with that, America's place on the world stage will no longer be as the "good guy" – we will become the "bad guy" like the USSR, Italy, Germany, China, and all other nations with a dictator and a semblance of secular socialism have been. 

I hate to forecast these troubling times. However, I would be less than honest to think that unless our nation (and this year, our nation stands on the decision of the US Supreme Court) turns to a more moral ideology, we will continue to decline as we have been for the last 50+ years. These results and many I have not yet stated will come to pass. They must. They are the only outcome that any similar nation has experienced. If we do the same things, why would we expect a different result? That would be the definition of insanity.

And that's how it is, As I See It, for today. I only ask you to "choose you this day whom you will serve. As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord!" (Joshua 24:15) For in Him is my only hope!

ARE WE COMING TO THE END OF AMERICA?

We are coming to the end of America. I know that sounds a bit sensational, and in a way it is meant to be. However, the nation that was declared in 1776 and fully ratified its constitution in 1790 is no longer the same in 2015. It is not just technology and lifestyle that has changed. The entire world-view of the nation has changed. America as founded is not the same country today. If our Supreme Court has a decision to make it is this: Will America come to an end?

Liberals would argue that America has NOT ended, she has progressed. But tomorrow, America's Supreme Court meets to hear oral arguments intended to persuade the justices that popular vote on issues across the land do not matter; arguments intended to convince justices that THEIR vote matters far more than that of the people. In an effort to federalize same-sex marriage over against a populace that has convincingly and nearly unanimously from state to state opposed same-sex marriage laws, the Supreme Court stands to overturn the will of the people. How could this be?

There are several reasons this has happened. I won't go down every road that may take us today. Today, I want to focus on one thing in particular – America's departure from the Christian faith. Secularism, cultural Christianity, and post-modernism (post-Christianity) taken together outnumber genuine Christians in positions of authority – be they on the Supreme Court (or lower courts), in Congress (both houses), in the White House (and presidential cabinet departments), in big business, in education, and in science and technology. Together they mock genuine faith. Together they oppose those who hold to a Biblical Worldview. Together, they strive to advance forward with no moral conscience or understanding. Ethics now are situational, rather than having any standard.

America, which required ethics and a Biblical Worldview to write and ratify the Constitution, no longer has that Biblical Worldview, and so that America has ended. What we have now is something altogether quite un-American. We have a chaotic form of socialism rising in the wings - a socialism rather than a democratic republic; a government where the minority matters more than the majority; a system of life where the government is supreme, and the people her servants. Americans seem to be falling for it as they follow their ungodly leaders without thought or consideration. Unfortunately, too many who vote for these leaders (the leaders with the power to appoint the remainder) do not have a Biblical Worldview, either. Those who do are not enough. The masses not only vote at the polls. We vote with our dollars. Our way of life, with all the fine products produced by ungodly businessmen, seems to be more important than our Biblical Worldview. Therefore, we buy products that make our lives better, even if they are produced by power-players for immorality – all because their products make us feel better, look better, or do things "better." So the power-players advance, and "We, the People" have our votes overturned by a few Supreme Court Justices sitting in a marble palace in Washington, D.C.; Justices who are supposed to be part of a government that is "by the people, for the people, and of the people." In that the people have allowed this to get to this point might be an argument that they are doing the will of the people. However, when they overturn clear votes of the people, it is obvious that they have usurped their authority. America today does not resemble the America envisioned by our founders.

We, as a nation, have plenty of pundits proclaiming that the American Experiment has failed. What they mean is that capitalism has failed. But is that so? Or could it be that such pundits and politicos and business tycoons are completely reliant on capitalism themselves while trying to steal it from the American People? How could this be? Without a Biblical Worldview and ethical limits, what remains to stop them? A legal system based on a shifting foundation (the growing idea that the Constitution is a "living document" interpreted at the whim of the Supreme Courts) cannot stop them; it only enables them. Capitalism hasn't failed. America no longer works as the framers intended. America has failed. But the framers warned of this. They said (and I summarize), "This nation cannot continue as intended when the people no longer fear God. When the politicians begin to consider tax revenue to be theirs instead of the people, they will overturn the will of the people whenever it is expedient. Government will expand continually – always." And such warnings from our framers and historical leaders have come to pass – unheeded today. What has truly failed is the people to stay true to their God. That said, America has come to an end.
So what now?

 Pray, Christians, Pray. Our God is WAY more powerful than the Supreme Court of the United States – and He can change their hearts and minds. Pray today, pray tomorrow, and pray until their deliberations are over and their decisions rendered in June! Pray believing in the Living God of Heaven. Pray without doubting. Pray by faith, NOT by sight. If you must see something when you pray, pray seeing the LORD, not our Supreme Court, current trends, or polls and pundits. When we say "God Bless America," we should be saying that and meaning we intend for America to return to her original faith – for THAT was blessing then and it will be now!

And that's America "As I See It" for today.

UPDATE:  For more information, go to: Ten things you need to know about the Supreme Court’s gay ‘marriage’ case this week

IS THE NEWS OVERWHELMING YOU?

I've been reading a plethora of news articles today that I only wish I hadn't read.  Do you ever get that way?  It's tempting to just turn off the news and pretend it all isn't so.  But that's how the ostrich handles stressful situations.  Unfortunately, its also how so many these days in America handle stressful situations.

The problem I'm having is processing all the news.  It's not trying to figure out what right and wrong is. It's trying to figure out how to handle the news in a Christian manner without sacrificing any of my Christian beliefs.  

So I pray.  I pray for wisdom to respond.  I pray for strength to do so in a loving way.  I pray for the truth to be light in a growing darkness.  I pray others would be effectively articulate in defense of our Constitutional rights - where God is acknowledged as the source of Civil Liberties and unalienable rights, not government.  I pray voters would stand up for our Constitution and hold our leadership accountable for squandering their trust and our freedoms.  I pray for peace between God and our nation (I believe we have effectively told Him to take a hike, but for the many grassroots Christians that remain).  I pray our country would step back and consider the gospel.  I pray that the gospel would be preached with power from pulpits across the country, and many would receive Jesus as their Savior.  I pray for a deeper holiness within my own life.  Sometimes, I don't know WHAT to pray, so the Lord prays for me!

Then, after I've prayed, I must face a world that continues to march against my faith.  I face a world that thinks we have a greater right to sin than we do to preach.  I face a world where my rights are less important than the rights of others because I'm a Christian.  I face a world where I am supposed to sacrifice MY beliefs and way of life to celebrate the beliefs and way of life of others.  If I stand for my beliefs, I am faced with the likelihood of a prison sentence or worse.  My fellow countrymen who stand for beliefs they share with me lose their businesses, homes, and more.  This affects their progeny as well.  I face a world that is increasingly Anti-Christ.  My brothers in the faith around the globe are losing their very lives for their faith.  In some parts of the world, there is an active effort to butcher or expel all vestiges of the Christian faith.  I face an evil world.

Then I am reminded that Jesus lives in me.  He is greater than the world I face, and He has overcome the world.  Whatever the world brings to me for my faith, it brought worse to Him, and He won.  The story is told.  The victory of Jesus Christ means I am more than a Conqueror in Christ Jesus!  I win!  This life is not all there is.  There is much more.  Those who have been martyred have been eternally and gloriously rewarded for their faith.  Blessed are they who trust in the name of the Lord!  My enemies are Jesus' footstool!  This world will pass away, but in Christ, I shall live forever!  I shall not fear what man can do to me, rather I fear what God can do to me.  If God be for us [Christians], then who can be against us?  Glory to God in the Highest!

And that how it is As I See It today!

The Decline of the Church - Is It Our Fault?

I have been doing a ton of musing over the decline of the church in recent years.  I have witnessed her decline in America for more years than I have been in the ministry – over a decade!  I have researched it by researching those who have studied it.  I have read all the polls, examined the books, read the papers, interviewed people myself, and I have often been confounded as to the bottom line of it all.  Theories abound.  There are theories ranging from the secularization of the church, to the over-programming of the church leaders.  Efforts to correct the decline range from style changes, programming changes, and methodology changes to the  Southern Baptist Convention’s recent study of a name change.  Yet, with all of that, the decline continues.  Why?

I think I may have found the answer – or at least part of it.  It is US!  Believers.  Leaders and congregants together seem to be missing something.  A few have found it, but it seems to be far too few.

The thing we are missing is Worship.  I believe that the key to revival is the key to evangelism; and this is worship.  We are not properly defining worship and so we are not giving the people a chance to worship properly.  I’m not the first to notice this, but it is a paradigm shift for me and my congregation.  There are several definitions of worship, all of which might be boiled down to the popular phrase: give worth to, or the “worth-ship” of someone.  Denominations and groups have held “solemn assemblies,” revivals, prayer vigils, evangelism efforts, and the like.  All have had some effect.  However, when our daily lives are given wholly to the Lord, our weekly services given to helping the believer to communicate how much Jesus is worth to them, then the whole worship experience makes room for the power of the Lord to fall upon the assembly!  This is a spectacle to behold!  It is an experience to be lived!  The believer will become an evangelist.  The lost will be confronted with the reality of Jesus in a personal way as they watch the moving of the Lord among His worshipping people!  The spiritual hunger that resides in the heart of Americans will be filled!

We have made our worship services too “media-driven” and programmed for the Lord to be in charge.  Rather, we have made the clock in charge.  We must do this, that, and the next thing quickly, professionally, and timely so the broadcast covers it all before its time is expired.  We must let our congregation out on time so the police can manage traffic when services end.  We have gotten so programmed that if the Lord wanted a 3 hour worship service full of testimony, praise, repentance, and prayer, we couldn’t do it.  We sing, play, and preach on time.  You almost never hear a testimony time of praise in a large church, and often enough, not in a small country church.  Our stomachs and crock-pot dinners await the noon hour.  We must leave the place.  We are there to receive rather than to give to the Lord the worth due His name. 

The more we worship in spirit and in truth, the more we look forward to worship times.  The more we worship in spirit and in truth, the more we invite others to join us.  The more we worship in spirit and truth, the more the lost will see the reality of our faith.  The more we worship in spirit and truth, the more we expect to experience during our corporate gatherings in Jesus’ name.  The more we worship in spirit and truth, the more prayer, revival, and evangelism we will see happening as a natural by-product of truly relating to the Lord in a personal way in public!  The church will regain her footing in our Christ-hungry nation if we, who are called by the Lord’s name, will seek His face, repent, and turn from our wicked ways – for the Lord will heal our land and hear our prayers (2Chronicles 7:14)!

Holler for Jesus,

Greg Yount

Check out my blogs:

Just-a-Thot - Devotional thoughts - http://justa-thot.blogspot.com

As I See It - Biblical perspectives on current events - http://asiseeit10.blogspot.com

Enemies of our Constitution

In the Fox News article, Army defends chaplain intervention over letter criticizing contraceptive mandate, LTC Tony Shaffer is  quoted as saying, “Clearly, the Army's job is to be a military organization, not be in the middle of a social values conflict," he told Fox News. "This is something we've got to resolve quickly. Otherwise it will diminish our ability to fight as a military.” 

There you have it.  Even the military agrees that national defense is weakened by these issues.  Social Values conflict has affected our military very heavily in the past several years.  DADT has been repealed – at the dismay of many of our troops.  Chaplains are silenced at an increasing rate.  Civil  disobedience is the feared result.  So we keep the troops in the dark so they can focus on fighting our national enemies.  Don’t we get it – our government (including our military) is sworn to defend ourselves against ALL enemies, foreign AND domestic.  Supporting our Constitution is central to service.  These social policies and experiments attack our constitution.  These things ARE our enemies.  The debate itself is not – but the mandates coming from the White House, Supreme Court, and Capitol Hill are very much threatening our Constitution.  (See my previous post to learn about these mandates.)

Our nation is being destroyed for sure.  It is being destroyed from within.  It is destroying the Constitution – which guides and binds us as a people.  When that is completely eradicated, we are no longer the United States of America.  We are something else completely.  Let us support our military’s mission when they fight against domestic enemies of our Constitution.  Let us fire all public servants who reveal themselves to be enemies of our Constitution – whether they sit on a bench, behind a desk in a round (oval) office, or in a large meeting hall.  Civil disobedience is even required by our Declaration of Independence.  So is throwing off a government that ceases to do its job. 

If Rick Santorum’s recent victories in the polls are any indication, could it be that America is waking up?  Keep praying, dear friends.  Keep standing up, fellow Americans.  This could be our last stand.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/02/07/military-chaplains-told-not-to-object-to-contraceptive-mandate-as-senators-look/#ixzz1ln70fp00

Holler for Jesus,

Greg Yount

Check out my blogs:

Just-a-Thot - Devotional thoughts - http://justa-thot.blogspot.com

As I See It - Biblical perspectives on current events - http://asiseeit10.blogspot.com

A New Level of Anti-Christian Sentiment in America

In a nation founded by men and women of deep faith, dedication, and devotion, the antithesis has arrived.  In the last two weeks, we have very troubling headlines, indeed, for those who wish to stand for Christ.  Our nation is now dominated by those of no faith, self-devotion and dedication to the eradication of those who “believe.”  We have a White House ruled by a President who boldly demands people of faith violate their faith under the command of the “almighty government” as they demand ALL EMPLOYERS (faith-based included) to provide contraceptives to their employees – via insurance.  We have a Judicial System which can overturn the will of the people regarding the clear and moral stand against same-sex marriages as the 9^th Circuit Court of Appeals overturned California’s “Proposition 8” which banned them.  Our Congress is completely confused over the freedom of religion as evidenced by their deliberate and continuing stand against the use of the name of “Jesus” in opening prayers. 

The secularization of all of these issues is beyond the pale, and dangerous beyond explanation.  Yet, Christians should stand for the Word of God, pray for the Will of God, and walk in the Way of God – even if this country rejects it all together.  Our citizenship is in Heaven first and in Heaven last.  This US citizenship is only temporary.  The way it’s going, that temporary might be shorter than we think.  Even so, come quickly, Lord!

Holler for Jesus,

Greg Yount

Check out my blogs:

Just-a-Thot - Devotional thoughts - http://justa-thot.blogspot.com

As I See It - Biblical perspectives on current events - http://asiseeit10.blogspot.com

State of the Union

I know it's a couple of days late, but I need to say something about the State of the Union address.

First of all, I only wish that the President had the courage to say and speak like this in recent years past. Being a lame duck means there's nothing to lose by speaking the truth pointedly. I'm glad he finally did.

I didn't agree with all he had to say, though. I'm all for winning the fight in Iraq. I'm all for the sanctity of life - at every stage. I'm all for securing our borders, and prosecuting both illegal immigrants and those who hire them knowingly. However, I am not for "retraining" workers who have lost their jobs because companies have gone overseas with their factories. I believe the better answer is to keep the jobs they are trained for, and don't let the jobs go overseas.

Lastly, I only wish that the moral issues were merely preference, then I might accept some democratic candidates and politicians for their solutions to our country's issues. The problem as I see it with the democrats is that they oppose reduced taxes and only want to raise them. They oppose the sanctity of life. They oppose any bars to immoral activity (i.e., homosexuality, etc.). These social issues are destroying the fabric of our society - in favor of padding our pockets? That is their claim. However, one can't pad my pocket while taking from it at the same time (raise taxes). Teaching my kids to ruin their lives through illicit sexual behaviors, lowering healthcare costs and raising taxes all run counter to one another. But Republicans are ineffective, too.

What's the answer - a genuine relationship with Jesus Christ - who gives one the moral ground on which to base his life, power to live counter to culture, and peace and grace to love others in spite of their shortcomings. May we all meet Jesus - before it's too late!

There IS an Agenda Against Christianity

Religion Must Be Destroyed, Atheist Alliance Declares
By Matt Purple
CNSNews.com Correspondent
October 03, 2007

(CNSNews.com) - Science must ultimately destroy organized religion, according to some of the leading atheist writers and intellectuals who spoke at a recent atheist conference in Northern Virginia. God is a myth, and children must not be schooled in any faith, they said, at the "Crystal Clear Atheism" event, sponsored by the Atheist Alliance International.

Sometimes the assault against Christianity is not so bold. Nevertheless, these bold announcements reveal the heart of the enemy - our obliteration. These bold announcements also reveal their methods - teaching in schools. With this agenda, can you wonder why the homeschool movement is growing among Believers? Can you wonder why pastors passionately counsel parents to carefully choose the colleges our teens are attending? It is real, and it is powerful. In the end times, there will be a falling away. But are we willing to give up or will we stand for the faith?

Where Are the Believing of the Next Generation?

Colorado Students Walk Out During Pledge, Recite Own Version

Thursday, September 27, 2007 - Associated Press

BOULDER, Colo. — About 50 Boulder High School students walked out of class Thursday to protest the daily reading of the Pledge of Allegiance and recited their own version, omitting "one nation, under God."

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Teen to be charged in Weare sex case

By GRETA CUYLER
Union Leader Correspondent

WEARE – A 17-year-old Henniker boy who admitted to having sex with his 15-year-old girlfriend will "absolutely" be arrested for sexual assault, police said yesterday.

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These two articles reveal the attitudes of the next generation. They certainly are not godly - and their Christian peers are silent. The adults involved in the second case were silent toward the indictment of the boy - or condemning it in the first place. We wonder why our world is falling apart!

Money and Power Trump Faith

16 U.S. senators accused of rejecting Catholic faith

Jim Brown
OneNewsNow.com
September 26, 2007

Catholic pro-life groups are condemning a major pro-abortion vote cast by more than a dozen Catholic U.S. senators.

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"The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil - 1Timothy 6:10"

 

It is not strange to see that several powerful people will forsake their nominal faith for their notorious power and money.  It seems to be the way of the world - and no new development in the faith community.  The church these days even lets money trump faith.  Oh, yes, when it comes to budgets and special offerings, churches want to look like they are operating on faith by making budgets exceed their expected income, and raising their offering goals and resting on faith to bring it in.  But is this really faith?  We bash the senators, while we say that money factors are the bottom line for the church.  Many ministries are brought to a halt because they are "too costly" - never mind that they are mandated by the Bible.  The gospel is watered down because the church's social standing (power) might be diminished if sin is preached against too harshly.  Oh, yes, I believe that this news report is not news.  I only wish that the same report can be printed about the churches that travel this same path.  May we all guard against letting money and power trump our faith!

SYATP

Students gather for prayer at schools' flagpoles

Ed Thomas
OneNewsNow.com
September 26, 2007

Students will rally around school flagpoles today as they participate in the 17th annual "See You at the Pole" (SYATP) nationwide rally.

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I'm all for the SYATP gathering of students.  In fact, as soon as I post this, I'm going to get ready to join the students of Bakersfield High at the flag pole along with my daughter - one of the local student leaders of this year's prayer effort.  However, I am saddened by the growing interest in the SYATP, and the growing lack of biblical faith our teen generation has.  As a substitute teacher in our local schools, I get to enter into some great conversations full-time teachers don't.  I have learned that there is a great void and growing misunderstanding that teens have about the things of God.  If only we could turn SYATP into a springboard event to lead them into a deeper relationship with the Lord, then it would be all the more sweet!

Anti-Christian Spirit Runs Amok

Youth pastor forced to choose church or troubled youth

Ed Thomas
OneNewsNow.com
September 24, 2007

A Florida youth pastor, who doubles as a youth counselor for a Tampa-area juvenile offender program, has filed suit against the agency for firing him. Liberty Counsel spokesman Mat Staver says Bay Services offered Hughes two choices – termination of employment, or not allowing these juveniles to be at his church. Staver calls the policy against religious participation overly broad and impermissible.

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I just don't completely understand how it has gotten to this point - where a Christian cannot invite people to his church simply because of his employment.  Our nation, which according to our constitution, says we are to have freedom of religion, and our government cannot prohibit the free exercise thereof.  It seems to me that this is just what is occurring.  Let this young man be a Muslim, a Jew, or a Hindu - what have you - and you'll not find this vitriolic, vibrant opposition to his faith.  But because he is a Christian, his faith is taboo.  What a world!

 

Good news - prison bars couldn't hold back the good news of Jesus Christ's Salvation in Paul's day.  The prisoners were told the gospel, and saved when they believed it.  Life on this little planet is not the only life there is.  Eternal life is a real and viable choice!

Keeping Up is Hard to Do

Christian author: Most parents clueless about teens' high-tech gadgets

The founder of a ministry stressing biblical values for teens states that most parents are overwhelmed by the digital world their teenagers live in.

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There is a strong case to be made for arguing that parenting is harder in our day than ever before. Thanks to technology, the "generation gap" widens ever further. It used to be music, fashion and entertainment choices that made such a gap exist. Today, as this article suggests, parents don't even know what their kids are up to - because they don't know how to be "up to it" themselves. Keeping up is hard to do.

But it must be done! Parents, get out of your world and into your kids - or the gap will continue to widen, and you will have failed at your task of passing on your faith to your kids. That one will last an eternity!

Bro. Greg

Do Loving Teens Have Strong Enough Faith to Become a Psychologist/Psychiatrist?

Study says religious tensions persist between psychiatrists, doctors

A new study published in the journal Psychiatric Services finds a continuation of tensions between religion and psychiatry. The findings are in the current issue of the journal Psychiatric Services, a publication of the American Psychiatric Association.

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I wonder (smile) why it is that psychiatrists deny the faith and the Scriptures? It is for this reason I am very concerned when young people in the church head off to college with visions of grandeur and a heart to help others choose the field of psychology and psychiatry. There faith must be VERY strong (and many think it is) to withstand the attacks it will face under the tutelage of faithless professors. The statistics, however prove that these young people do not have the VERY strong faith they believe themselves to have - for it is gone when the emerge from the coursework and enter into the practice.