Thanksgiving Day Injustice

For Thanksgiving Day yesterday, Planned Parenthood published Thanksgiving "Discussion Points".  Nothing about being thankful for the gift of life, of course!  No, we were all encouraged to talk up with our families the idea of abortion as reproductive JUSTICE!  No, I'm not kidding.  A mother destroying the life of her unborn child is now being held up as JUSTICE.  Obviously not justice for the innocent child whose life is taken.

This is of great concern to me not only because I am 100% Pro-Life, not only because it's such a constant battle to constantly dicipher of politically correct doublespeak in which many cultural and political leaders are engaging, but also because I am so vitally concerned about justice.

This is part of the problem with this new doublespeak:  When a word can mean anything at all, in reality in means nothing at all.  If cutting an unborn baby apart or sucking it out with a vacuum (or any other method of destruction) can be called justice, then justice means nothing at all.  And this makes the term ineffective when we try to talk about real issues of justice for downtrodden, oppressed or enslaved people.  Once we accustom ourselves to thinking of justice as our personal right to do anything we want even though it destroys the life of another, we have then stripped the term of its power to discuss real and important issues that dramatically impact the lives of people.  Next thing you know, maybe PP will be claiming that when we recite "with liberty and justice for all", we are praying for abortion "rights".

The Biblical prophet Isaiah described our days perfectly:
"Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, And prudent in their own sight!" (Isaiah 5:20)

Are we now at the point where anything goes, anything can be made to sound good, and half of our words mean nothing at all?

UNIVERSAL CHILDREN'S DAY-Why are Children Valuable?

Today is Universal Children’s Day.  The world over, people are recognizing the value of our children.  In some places, however, children are not valued.  On last night’s news we learned of children being used as human shields.  This very day children are trafficked, sold into slavery, sold for sex, and used a delivery devices for bombs.

The value of children is tied up in the value we place on human beings.  Of course, all of us like to think we are important, but are we really objectively so, or is our value something we simply assign to ourselves, sort of like patting ourselves on the back?

For Christians like me, children are valuable because people are valuable.  People are valuable because God made us in His image and for His own pleasure.  “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.  And God blessed them…” (Genesis 1:26-28a) .  “All things were created by him, and for him” (Colossians 1:16c).

Some religions see children as valuable, but only insofar as they fulfill the purpose of the group.  They may see them as valuable as instruments of jihad or war by which their religion is expanded, or as propagators of more of their particular brand of faith, thus changing the logistics of nations, influencing votes to bring them into power through democratic means. 

In the Christian faith, children are valuable simply because God made them special in His image,  and He finds pleasure in His creation.  I find this immensely liberating.  It frees me from trying to force my children or those whom I serve in ministry to become what I think they should be.  It frees them to become what God wants them to be.  It helps us all enjoy their unique value whether they are smart or mentally challenged, average kids or autistic, beautiful , strong and healthy or physically challenged.  It helps me appreciate those who are different from me as much as those to whom I relate more easily.

Sure, Christians too think about what their children might become and the great things they might do for the Kingdom of God.  Yet that is not what gives our children their essential value.  We understand that they are precious because God made them, and He made them human.

In the Christian faith, children are a blessing from God.  From the moment of conception until God takes that new life back into His hands in death, children bring blessing into our lives.

We at Every Child Ministries gladly join in celebrating our children today!

Are homosexuals born that way? part 2

Although I have not seen any compelling evidence that homosexuals are born that way, I admit that it seems that way to many people. 

So for the sake of considering the issue, I'm saying that maybe some people are born with that inclination.  The question then is, Is that a reason they should pursue that lifestyle?  Is that a reason society should affirm them in that inclination? 

Well, let's think of some other examples.  People may be born with a psychopathic personality.  Should we affirm that or try to treat it?

People may be born with a bent toward pedophilia or beastophilia.  Should we affirm those bents and tell them it's OK, it's normal, that's the way God made them?  We shouldn't send sexual abusers of children to jail any more?

People may be born with a craving to set things on fire.  Should we encourage the bent toward arson, writing it into our children's textbooks as just another normal lifestyle?

People may be born with leukemia.  Instead of treating it and praying for them and rooting for them to overcome it, should we just affirm that leukemia is beautiful?  May start leukemia pride parades?

The point is that all these abnormalties are evidences that the whole creation has been cursed through our sin, just as the Bible points out.  We normally don't have any trouble sorting out the sin or the sickness from the sinner.  We normally don't have any trouble affirming the value of the person, affirming our love and support for the person, while also fighting the abnormality.

It's just in a few select cases that we do that.  Homosexuality (and many other sexual aberrations) is one of those cases.  In those cases we want to see it entirely differently.  It's immensely popular and politically correct to affirm THOSE cases alone as normal, just another lifestyle, made by God, etc.

It isn't very consistent or logical thinking, though, is it?

Again--Anyone may enter this discussion, no matter what your viewpoint, as long as your discussion is civil and respectful.  I welcome your comments.

Were homosexuals born that way?

Well the question of whether to accept homosexuality as normal has come to Africa.

Wasn't so years ago.  I remember in the 80's in Congo an old pastor came over to me after talking with a group of other pastors.  "Mama," he asked, "is it true that in the U.S. a man can marry another man?"

"Yes, I'm sad to say, that is being done in some places in the U.S." I said.  He mouthed dropped open.  He turned and said to the others, "She says it's TRUE!"

Another time a young African woman asked me how homosexuals "do it", since they are obviously lacking the God-supplied equipment for sex.  I told her one way was through anal sex, explaining that in the briefest and simplest of terms.  She shook her head.  "Kitoko VE," she said.  "NOT pretty!"

That pretty much has been the attitude I've seen in Africa.  Although I met one representative of an NGO who said she was there to help "gays" come out.  I wasn't surprised she was finding some.  Most poor people in Africa would be anything you wanted if it meant they'd get some special kind of help.

One of the biggest arguments I'm hearing is that homosexuals were born that way, and God created us, so He must have created them as homosexuals and therefore approve of them being such.  It sounds very logical.

Let's think about that for a minute.  I, being an evangelical Christian, do subscribe to the belief that God created our first parents and gave to them the gift of being able to procreate (have children through sex).  So ultimately I agree that God is the Creator of us all.  Even homosexuals.  God made them and they are His beloved creatures just as much as me.

But those who believe the Bible enough to believe the acccount of Creation should believe it enough to believe the account of how that creation got spoiled.  It comes in the very next chapter after the description of Creation.  The short version is that God gave our first parents a test--an opportunity to choose to obey or to disobey, to choose their Creator's way or their own way.  They failed the test, choosing their own way over God's.  Some may argue about the details of the account (although I accept them), but you don't have to look around you very far in our world to see the far-reaching results.  Evil has come into our world and is still very much with us.  Even those who don't believe in God usually have some standard of good and evil, thus acknowleging that evil is very real.

God did not make us evil.  He made our first parents good.  But He also gave us another gift, without which we would not be fully human as we know and understand humanity.  He gave us the gift of freedom, of choice.  That was part of the dignity of being human.  We were not programmed with instinct like animals.  We were able to choose, and we were warned of the devastating consequences of choosing our own way over God's.

So according to Christian belief, the world is not as God created it to be.  Even the ground was cursed because of our first father's sin.  I know the reality of sinfulness in my own heart all too well, if I am honest.

When some argue that God created people, so if they are homosexuals, God must have made them such, they are forgetting or ignoring that the world is not now as God created it to be.  Much has been spoiled because of sin.  Now we are laboring under the effects/ consequences not only of the sin of our first parents, but all the wrong choices of generation after generation of ancestors, the wrong choices of human societies as a whole, and also our own personal wrong choices.  Things are majorly messed up.  I don't see how anyone can dispute that.  Look around you.

I am not at all convinced that there is sufficient evidence to support the claim (or more commonly, the assumption) that homosexuals are born that way.  We'll save that for another discussion.  For now, let's say for the sake of argument that they sometimes are.  Even if that were true, it only shows that our world is messed up.  People are born with cancer.  That was not God's intention for them.

More on this discussion to come

A WOMAN'S RIGHT TO CHOOSE & THE WAR ON WOMEN

My husband and I have been talking about "rights" lately.  It seems to me that we human beings have got confused about that a time or two.  It seems to me we are bogged in a mire of confusion right now.  The founding documents of my country, the United States, talk about being "endowed by our Creator" with "inalienable" or unchangeable rights.  God-given rights.  Not rights we assigned to ourselves because that's what we wanted to do, but rights that are good in the natural order of things.  Life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness.  Freedom of speech.  Freedom of religion.  These rights and others have stood the test of time.  These rights do not infringe on the rights of others, and if some would warp them to do so, we have had the good sense to realize that the expression of one right cannot be interpreted or used to infringe on the rights of others.  I can practice my own religion, for example, but if my religion says I should amputate the right hands of all men, I cannot practice that, because my right to practice my religion stops short of injuring others.

How different from some of the "rights" many people are pushing today.  Today many of our governmental and cultural leaders have decided that there are new "rights" people are "entitled" to.  We don't want to ever say it in such a way that it shows clearly that another's rights are being violated, so we never say "a woman's right to end the life of her child."  We don't even like "right to an abortion".  We want to make sure nobody thinks about the victim or the violation of another, so we use nicey euphemisms like "a woman's right to choose", "a woman's right to make her own healthcare decisions," "reproductive rights", etc.  It's more than euphemisms.  It's doublespeak.  It's talk that consists of words having no relation to reality.  Recently I read that even the UN is determined to push "reproductive rights" as a universal right.  If anyone thinks differently, they are fostering a "war on women."  That's what some would have us believe.

If it is my right as a woman to choose when to end the life of my children, it is a right of a far different nature than the inalienable, God-given rights described in our founding documents.  I can practice my religion without hurting anyone.  I can speak my mind without hurting anyone.  I can live in freedom and seek happiness in many ways that hurt no one.  But I can never have an abortion without hurting someone.   Actually, I can never have an abortion without killing someone.  Without denying that same life, liberty and pursuit of happiness that I enjoy to someone.  It's impossible.  Abortion by its very nature ends a life.

It's pretty bleak when I think about how the idea of "rights" are used today.  Whatever we decide we want to do, we just manufacture the "right" to do it, it seems to me.

I am somewhat encouraged, however, when I remember that in the past we have fallen into this pit a number of times before and still managed to climb out of it.  I remember that there was a time when the Supreme Court of our beloved land declared that a slave had no rights that a white man need respect.  Some people wanted to have slaves.  They found it profitable, so they gave themselves the right to do it.  Thank God we later came to our senses and even the Supreme Court realized that it is not infallible.

Hitler felt the Jews and others did not have the right to live.  A similar thing happened between the Hutu and Tutsi tribes in modern Uganda just in recent times.  "Rights" manufactured in the human imagination.  "Rights" to enable wicked people to do whatever their evil hearts imagined.  Those "rights" took the lives of millions, but they did not stand the test of time.

We need to get back to the God-given, unchangeable rights.  A woman's right to choose to terminate the life of her child is NOT one of those.

The Values for which I will stand, pray, & speak

 
A dear & greatly respected friend has been corresponding with me about my Facebook posts.  He feels my posts are "hateful" and "bitter."  I don't agree.  I do not FEEL hateful or bitter towards anyone.  But my discussion with him caused me to realize that others who may disagree with me may see my posts differently than me, and I admit that I did actively work against the re-election of President Obama.  Now, after the election, I still find myself wanting to speak up for the same causes.   The truth is, I am much more issue-oriented than I am personality oriented.  I spent some time praying about this, asking God to guide me in future posts and to show me anywhere where I was wrong in what I posted.  I admit that I might have passed some potentially offensive posts in my zeal to see America go in a different direction.  As a result, I decided to think through and write down in firm form the values I will speak up about, and the kinds of posts I will not make or pass on.  Since I first wrote this on Facebook, I've added a couple of other things, & I'll continue to do so as God brings more to my mind.  For now, this are my own private rules.  They apply not only to Facebook, but to all public discussions.  Also, I am glad to say that I have many friends who disagree with me, some of them on almost every point below.  I still value them as friends and respect their right to make their own choices.  But for me, I have to speak up for the values that matter to me.  Some will see that I did not list my obvious interest in helping African children, fighting child trafficking & slavery.  I am trying to keep this as short as possible, & I feel those interests naturally flow out of the second point.  My support for the value & dignity of human life reaches far further than abortion, although that is included.  It is that core value which causes much of the ministry for which I, and Every Child Ministries, have become known.  Well, here are my values & private rules.  It might be interesting for others to do something similar.

THE VALUES FOR WHICH I WILL STAND, PRAY, AND SPEAK

Testimonies that honor my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and encourage other Christians.

 

The unique, innate value & dignity of human life as created in the image of God from conception until natural death.

Respect for all people as created in the image of God whether or not I agree with their views, decisions or lifestyles. This respect not to be interpreted as approval of their choices.

 

Respect for people’s right to make their own choices, up to the point those choices do not infringe on the life or right of another human being.

 

Religious freedom for all & discussion of ways we should react when those views are threatened or ignored.

Human sexuality, marriage and family as God created them to be & as a standard towards which we should strive.

Support for the nation of Israel to exist and to defend that right.

Exposing the progress of the imposition of Shariah law in non-Islamic countries.

Exposing the increasing persecution of Christians and speaking out as their voice.

Financial responsibility including minimizing debt, spending resources wisely for the good of all, and emphasizing programs that empower people to stand on their own and not to become permanently dependent on government.

Limited powers of government and strict, literal interpretation of our founding documents.

Truthfulness, transparency, and normal use of words without reinterpretation and doublespeak. Accountability from public officials and cultural spokespeople.

Factual exposés related to the above principles.

Prayer for all elected & appointed officials.

 

WHAT I WILL NOT SAY OR PASS ON

 

 Name calling and nastiness or villainizing of entire groups or political parties.

Nit-picking not related to the above principles.

 

Anything that just complains or expresses anger about those with opposing views without contributing in a positive way to the discussion.

Complaints & demands for recounts related to the election.• Respect for all people as created in the image of God whether or not I agree with their views, decisions or lifestyles. This respect not to be interpreted as approval.

 

 

Post Election Blues

My heart is heavy and sad today.  I'm not scared, not desperate.  I know God is on the throne and sovereign over all.  I know God is still the same as He was before the election of Barack Obama to a second term.  Ultimately, I trust in Him.

But I am sober, somber.  I know that this nation has made a huge mistake--not because they elected a Democrat and not a Republican, but because they elected a man who claims to be a Christian and yet spits in the face of so very many Biblical ideas and principles, even things as basic as respect for all human life and what marriage is.  That's why I decided to take an open stand against him on Facebook, even realizing I could lose a friend and the mission could lose support. 

America has been moving away from God for some time.  Obama did not start the engine rolling downhill.  But his policies and the principles he openly espouses are like stepping on the gas full speed ahead.  His polcieis and principles mock God and His Word. 

As I thought about the election, I can't help but think of the Bible account of when the children of Israel wanted a king, so they could be like all the nations around them.  God said no, He was to be their king.  But they kept insisting.  God warned them pointedly what would happen if they got a king.  He would make them poor with heavy taxes.  He would enslave their children to serve him.  But they still insisted.  So God let them have their own way, and they suffered all the consequences God had warned them about.  (I Kings 8)

I think about Romans 1:24, 26 & 28, where the Bible says "God gave them up" because "they did not like to retain God in their knowledge." 

Is God at the point of giving America up?  Has He done so already?  I can't say for sure, but I do know we are headed in that direction, in a steep downhill race, picking up steam, going faster and faster.  There is a huge cliff ahead, but we show no signs of stopping or slowing down.  I knew before the election we were close to that point if we haven't reached it yet.

I feel we have crossed a line, and there may be no return. 

Of course, I know God can bring us back if we turn from our sin and seek His face, but I also see that when we insist on going our own way, God's judgment often comes in the form of giving us up--simply withdrawing His grace and letting us eat the fruit of our own ways.

My mood tonight reminds me of one of our most difficult nights in Congo.  The army was in mutiny and was systematically pillaging and destroying sections of the city of Kinshasa.  We were staying at a friend's home and they were not able to get back because the streets were unsafe and volatile.  We could hear gunfire in the background.  We heard that the soldiers were coming to loot the neighborhood where we were staying.  They had planned to do so that very night.  There was no way to get out and nowhere to go.  We felt that we might die that night.  We gathered the African guard and workers who were there.  Together we knelt on the veranda and committed our lives to God.  I remember that tears streamed down our faces as we faced the fact that we could be in our last hours on earth.  It was a sober, somber time.  Yet the most amazing peace filled my heart.  I knew that if the soldiers killed me, I would be with Jesus.

That's the sense I feel right now.  Sober.  Somber,  Realizing that we are in awesome and imminent danger as a nation.  Yet still knowing that Jesus is with us.  Nothing can separate us from Him and His love.

The future?  It's not looking bright right now as far as this life goes.  It's looking very serious for our grandchildren.  Yet Jesus is with those who love Him, and we know we are on the winning side in the end.   Lord, let me experience the reality of that in even greater measure!