The Ant and the Grasshopper

I'm not one for email forwards usually, but this caught my attention:

The Ant & the Grasshopper 2008
Two Different Versions! Two Different Morals!

OLD VERSION: The ant works hard in the withering heat all summer long, building his house and laying up supplies for the winter. The grasshopper thinks the ant is a fool and laughs and dances and plays the summer away. Come winter, the ant is warm and well fed. The grasshopper has no food or shelter, so he dies out in the cold.
MORAL OF THE STORY: Be responsible for yourself!

MODERN VERSION: The ant works hard in the withering heat all summer long, building his house and laying up supplies for the winter. The grasshopper thinks the ant is a fool and laughs
and dances and plays the summer away. Come winter, the sh ivering grasshopper calls a press
conference and demands to know why the ant should be allowed to be warm and well fed while others are cold and starving. CBS, NBC, PBS, CNN, and ABC show up to provide pictures of the shivering grasshopper next to a video of the ant in his comfortable home with a table filled with food. America is stunned by the sharp contrast. How can this be, that in a country of such wealth,
this poor grasshopper is allowed to suffer so? Kermit the Frog appears on Oprah with the grasshopper, and everybody cries when they sing, 'It's Not Easy Being Green. Jesse Jackson stages a demonstration in front of the ant's house where the news stations film the group singing, 'We shall overcome.' Jesse then has the group kneel down to pray to God for the grasshopper's sake. Nancy Pelosi & John Kerry exclaim in an interview with Larry King that the ant has gotten rich off the back of the grasshopper, and both call for an immediate tax hike on the ant to make him pay his fair share. Finally, the EEOC drafts the Economic Equity & Anti-Grasshopper Act
retroactive to the beginning of the summer. The ant is fined for failing to hire a proportionate
number of green bugs and, having nothing left to pay his retroactive taxes, his home is confiscated by the government. Michelle gets her old law firm to represent the grasshopper in a
defamation suit against the ant, and the case is tried before a panel of federal judges that Barack Obama appointed from a list of single-parent welfare recipients. The ant loses the case. The story ends as we see the grasshopper finishing up the last bits of the an t's food while the
government house he is in, which just happens to be the ant's old house, crumbles around him because he doesn't maintain it. The ant has disappeared in the snow. The grasshopper is found dead in a drug related incident and the house, now abandoned, is taken over by a gang of spiders who terrorize the once peaceful neighborhood.
MORAL OF THE STORY: Be careful how you vote in 2008

Here he is folks- unadulterated socialism

Barrack Obama radio interview

I can't believe Charles Gibson pointed this out, but he did: when the capital gains tax is lowered, tax revenues to the government soar. When the capital gains tax is raised, revenues decrease. Listen to Obama's response to this FACT.

Glenn Beck on Obama's socialism

A good reason to be arrested

This video is indicative of how militantly pro-homosexuality the public education system is becoming in this country. I applaud the resolve of this father, and it is my hope that if these sorts of things begin to happen outside of the liberal Northeast, we will stand our ground and humbly accept the consequences for civil disobedience.

Is socialist too strong a word?

Cal Thomas doesn't think so:

The October surprise may turn out to be a seven-year-old interview with Barack Obama in which he strongly suggests that the U.S. Constitution is an impediment to his desire to redistribute the nation's wealth. How does Obama credibly take the oath of office to "preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States" when he thinks it impedes his socialist agenda?

Is socialism too strong a word? Consider one of its definitions from dictionary.com and tell me it is something other than Obama's economic philosophy: "A theory or system of social reform which contemplates a complete reconstruction of society, with a more just and equitable distribution of property and labor."

Continue reading here...

The Haunting of...You

Sure, most parents make mistakes with their children. Forgetting to change a diaper when they are babies, yelling at them as kids, and of course, the ever popular selling their soul to the devil.

Say what? Yep, that's exactly what happened to Haley Bennett. Well, the character she plays anyway in the film The Haunting of Molly Hartley.

Not much mystery left after reading that title - eh?

And yep, pretty much the same plot as a legion of horror films from the last 50 years. Pact with Satan, creepy helium induced demon voices, and...who knew? The boyfriend was even in on it! Muhahahahaha!

I guess the Halloween release date is even a further attempt to ramp up the scare-o-meter and give you spine tingling chills and thrills as you watch a film that I would have called - The Devil Went Down to the O.C.

While it may be fun to scare yourself silly, when the goose bumps go away, you can take comfort in the fact that no one can sell your soul to Satan. That choice is yours. And believe me, I see teens make that choice in little and big ways nearly every day of my life.

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Beer, bad habits fuel college weight gain

This can't be too surprising, but it's helpful information...

Many college students don't gain the dreaded freshman 15 their first year away from home, but they do pack on 6 to 9 pounds, two studies show.

Why? Key reasons include dramatic increases in beer drinking and significant decreases in physical activity.

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MySpace Top Draw For Young Movie Fans

It's no secret that MySpace has become a key part of the promotional machinery behind big Hollywood releases. Now the social network has produced metrics underscoring the leading role it plays connecting studios with young audiences.

According to a Nielsen study commissioned by MySpace, the site is the top Web destination for 15- to-24-year-olds looking for information on new movies. Nearly 30% of consumers in that coveted demographic turned to MySpace first for movie searches, beating out Yahoo and Google, each with 23%. AOL trailed with 14%.

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ESRB Teams with Parenting Group

The ESRB today announced a partnership with Bonnier Corp.'s Parenting Group. The two parties will work together to help parents make better decisions about the games their children play via new online tools and content on Parenting.com. The ESRB and Parenting Group partnership is expected to generate roughly 50 million parent impressions.

"As we head into the Holiday season, parents are keeping their ears open for gift ideas, and video games are a perennial favorite. But just like movies and TV shows, not all games are intended for kids," said ESRB president Patricia Vance.

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American Spirituality Gives Way to Simplicity and the Desire to Make a Difference

American spirituality is a mixed bag- here's a short story detailing some of the hodge-podge of spirituality dotting this nation's landscape...

Love it or Hate it, texting is huge

Think texting is just for the young? Think again. New research from Sprint Sponsored by:
confirms that the under-30 crowd is definitely texting in mass, and they're driving their parents to text, too. The number of adults who are texting has risen from just two years ago, when a 2006 Pew Research study cited that 13 percent of adults ages 50-64 used the text messaging function on their mobile phone. The Sprint study reveals that now 20 percent of adults ages 55-64 send text messages.

Seventy-six percent of adults ages 55-64 who are texting are sending messages to their children. According to 2007 U.S. Census Bureau data, 57 percent of 50- to 64-year-olds have children ages 18-24. With those kids away at college or living in different cities, texting is a fast and efficient way for parents to stay in touch.

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Upcoming events

Friday, 10/31- Free Concert! Doors open at 7:30, first show starts at 8, event ends around 11. Coffee shop will be open with cafe drinks, candy, and pizza for sale. All bands will have merch (ts, cds, one will even have a dvd for sale!), so bring some spare cash to support the bands.

Sunday, 11/2- Paintball. We're going to Cedar Ridge on Friend Road in Germantown immediately after the service Sunday morning. Costs are as follows: $10 field fee. $20 field fee and rental equipment (gun, mask, air, and 200 paint balls). $15 for 500 paintballs. Basically, if you have your own equipment, bring about $30. If you don't have your own equipment, bring $35-$40. Everything you buy will need to be paid for in cash unless you bring a check to Dustin Sunday morning. We'll stop at Macdonald's in Germantown en route to the field, so have some extra cash for that or pack a lunch to eat on the way.

Friday, 11/14- Scallywag Tag. This is an overnight laser tag excursion in Cincinatti at Scallywag Tag, a Pirate-themed laser tag venue. The whole night costs $20 and includes laser tag all night and live music from local bands. There might be some food involved here as well, but I don't have all the details yet. We'll leave the church around 10:30, depending on what time the event begins. We'll return to the church around 7am on Saturday, 11/15.

Mark Richt

Most people wouldn't figure an SEC college football coach to have much of a soft side, but Mark Richt is that guy. This moving video explains why, and I think the Christian church would do itself good to follow his example and begin demonstrating their pro-life convictions by adopting orphans and castaway children, for "Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world, red and yellow black and white, they are precious in His sight, Jesus loves the little children of the world."

What's God got to do with it?

In her new book, "Love Your Life," Victoria Osteen tells the following story. When she and her husband, Joel, were courting, he came over to her house for dinner. She knew he was the son of a prominent Houston pastor and she, a nice Christian girl, was hoping they could talk about Scripture while she prepared the meal. "Joel began flipping through the pages, but before long, he put the Bible down," she wrote. Victoria was disappointed and complained, "I thought you'd be a spiritual giant."

"Joel said nothing and just grinned at me as we carried on with the evening." Later, he joked with friends that she'd called him a "spiritual midget."

Dustin's interjection- if Newsweek can see this, why can't the Christian church?

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Abortion Unfiltered DVDs

Abort73.com has produced a video that they have for sale. I'm wondering if any of you have an interest in purchasing this short video (only a few minutes). This is not a full length documentary by any means. Rather, it is a short video that highlights the main issues involved around the issue of abortion. It could be a helpful tool for you to have on hand to give away to people who you converse with regarding this issue, including those who believe abortion is an insignificant issue, or that an abortion only involves a mother and her doctor, or that we do not have an obligation to get involved in a pro-life cause.

Again, this video is graphic, but the reality of abortion is graphic.

If you have an interest in purchasing one (or several) of the DVDs please respond to this message and indicate how many DVDs you may want. They will only be $2 apiece.

49 Babies Saved on Pro-life Day of Silent Solidarity That We Know of So Far

The following is the text from an email that I received from Bryan Kemper, the founder of Stand True which sponsors the Day of Silent Solidarity that our students participated in last Tuesday. Here's what he had to say:

"The Pro-life Day of Silent Solidarity was a huge success yesterday with 49 babies saved that we know of and two girls coming to Christ. We know that it is because of all of you and your willingness to allow God to use you that this is possible. While we know about 49 babies saved, I am sure there are many more we don't know about.

"I know that many of you faced persecution for standing up for the babies and God will bless you for your courage. What is important for you to remember is that you were not alone even if you felt like your were. Over 250,000 students were with you around the world in 25 countries taking the same stand Tuesday in solidarity.

"I can tell you that I have spent many hours in tears over the past couple of days. Every time I start reading some of the stories that are coming in, it renews my commitment to this movement. I have always believed and preached that it will be the youth that will change this nation, and the PLDSS has proven that to me again. I don't understand why God has given me the honor to work with some of you; I am tuley blessed. There are no words to describe how proud I am to know such amazing young people who are so committed to Christ and to life.

"I felt the best way to tell you about the day was to allow your words to speak about the event. Here are just a few testimonies I have received from yesterday, and there are hundreds more.

“I attend a Baptist college so I knew I wouldn't get much of a chance to spread the word so after my last class I went down to the mall and was there for about 20 minutes before a group of teenage girls walked up to me and asked what I was doing. I handed them a paper and one started to cry. I took off the tape and asked what was wrong. I found out that 2 of those girls had just set up an appointment for an abortion. We sat and talked for almost an hour; it was clear that God was at work. Not only did these girls cancel the appointment but I had the privilege to lead them to the Lord.”

“I went into my work Tuesday. My boss knew what I was doing and why. When I walked in he explained to a lady in line behind me what I was doing. I had my 4 year old little sister with me. I handed the woman a flier. Yesterday I learned she had passed that flier on to a co-worker. Little did either of us know that co-worker had an appointment for an abortion THAT AFTERNOON!! She canceled her appointment & came into my work Wednesday to talk to me.”

"I'm speechless! I saved a baby today! Without even saying a word! Praise the Lord for His hand is upon us and our harvest shall be bountiful."

“ I was surprised as to how much I prayed; I have never prayed that much in school, ever. There were originally five people doing it this morning and by the end of the day it doubled. I was super happy. You never know how many people are affected by the things you do.”

“There was another woman considering abortion, so again I broke my silence and had a 15 minute tear-session/convo with her and she too opted for adoption! I'm so far beyond ecstatic and I am yet again radically affected by this!”

"Today was great! You could walk down the wall at school and see red tape everywhere. Very few people stayed silent; it is hard not to talk for a day but having tape over your mouth helps. I had so many people come up and ask what the tape was about. I showed them my badge. I cant wait for next year. This day means a lot to me. I got pregnant when I was 15 and people told me I was ruining my life and I should just abort him. I didn't and I couldn't be happier. I've gotten my GED, am in college and have gotten a job offer for when I grad. I'm proof that you can make it no matter your age and I want everyone to know."

"When I got back to class, I stayed silent- lunch was crazy; my white board got a lot of good use. I brought about 15 people who were wondering about what I was doing to one area and told them about it. After a heated debate with a fellow student, about 13 of them changed their views on abortion. Next year I'm going to hold a part-year club and it will be the most successful year of Silent-Day for me and for that school"

"I was brutally picked on today, but I don't care; I'll do it again next year. Children will live and that's what I care about! I broke my silence today for a girl, she not only opted for adoption but talked another girl into opting the same way!"

"Like I said these are just a few of the amazing stories I have received so far and they keep pouring in. You can read more at www.silentday.org."

Teen Sex: The Parent Factor

Many policymakers, health professionals, and "safe sex" advocates respond to these troubling sta­tistics by demanding more comprehensive sex edu­cation and broader access to contraceptives for minors. They assume that teens are unable to delay their sexual behavior and that a combination of information about and access to contraceptives will effectively lead to protected sex, preventing any form of harm to youngsters. Not only are these assumptions faulty, they tend to disregard impor­tant factors that have been linked to reduced teen sexual activity. A particularly noticeable omission is parental influence.

Parents, as teens themselves reveal, are the ones who have the most influence on their children's decisions about sex. Indeed, two-thirds of all teens share their parents' values on this topic.

Continue reading here...

Advertisers bombard kids where they live

Do you know how many advertising images our children are bombarded with every day?

Drum roll please, and I'm not making this up -- as many as 6,000 to 7,000. That's according to findings from the folks at the Center for Parent/Youth Understanding in Elizabethtown, Pa.

That number is a little tough to imagine, but it gets easier when one thinks of the fleeting images our kids get on everything from billboards to backpacks to lunch boxes and milk cartons, store windows and stores. And that's all before they get to magazines, television, Internet and radio.

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Inactive Teens at Risk for More Behavioral Problems

In adolescents, physical inactivity is associated with emotional and behavioral problems, suggests a Finnish study of more than 7,000 teenagers who took part in a survey that assessed their levels of physical activity and mental and emotional health.

Boys who reported less than one hour of moderate to vigorous physical activity a week had more symptoms of anxiety, withdrawal and depression than boys who were more active. Inactive girls had similar problems, and were more likely than inactive boys to also report sleep problems and rule-breaking behaviors.

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EU warns youth: turn your MP3 players down!

Millions of youngsters across Europe could suffer permanent hearing loss after five years if they listen to MP3 players at too high a volume for more than five hours a week, EU scientists warned Monday.

The scientists' study, requested by the European Commission, attacked the concept of "leisure noise," saying children and teenagers should be protected from increasingly high sound levels -- with loud mobile phones also coming in for criticism.

"There has been increasing concern about exposure from the new generation of personal music players which can reproduce sounds at very high volumes without loss of quality," the Commission, the EU's executive arm, said in a statement.

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Uncle Paul

My Uncle Paul died this morning. He was diagnosed several months ago with throat cancer and he succumbed to the disease this morning. The last few weeks have been particularly difficult for him as he got weaker and weaker. My Aunt Shirley, who is my father's sister, made the excruciatingly difficult decision to pull Uncle Paul's feeding tube early this week. He was not able to speak for the last several weeks and he was confined to his bed and it's honestly relieving to know that he's not suffering anymore. Slow deaths are difficult to watch because of the inevitable result that you know is coming, but once it happens it's relieving in a way.

Deaths always cause me to sit quietly and reflect on my favorite chapter of the bible, I Corinthians 15. The hope of the Christian is ultimately grounded on the resurrection of Jesus, and I take so much comfort from this passage:

I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:

"Death is swallowed up in victory." "O death, where is your victory?
O death, where is your sting?"

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

Paul grounds the steadfast perseverance and trusting faith of the Christian in the victory over death that was won for us by our Lord Jesus Christ. Because He lives, we can face tomorrow.

Please pray for my Aunt Shirley. She's a precious lady, and it breaks my heart to think of what she is dealing with. I won't make it out to the services next week, but I'll be out there at Thanksgiving time. Please pray that God will encourage her spirit, give her strength and comfort and the peace that passes all understanding in these days and weeks to come.

Finally, share Jesus with your friends and neighbors. Ask them about the seeming finality of death, and offer life to them through the person and work of Jesus Christ who, thanks be to God, has secured a final victory over death!

Pro-Life Politicians Have Made a Difference, Pro-Life Laws Work

During the past 35 years, the pro-life movement has made real progress. The number of abortions has fallen in 12 out of the past 14 years and the total number of abortions has declined by 21 percent since 1990. These gains are largely due to pro-life political victories at the federal level in the 1980s and at the state level in the 1990s which have made it easier to pass pro-life legislation.

As Election Day approaches, the mainstream media is, as usual, showcasing self-identified ''pro-lifers'' who are supporting the Democratic Party's pro-abortion presidential nominee. In 2004, a number of media outlets cited an analysis by ethicist Glen Harold Stassen which claimed--wrongly--that the number of abortions had increased slightly since President Bush's inauguration in 2001. The New York Times published an op-ed by Dean Mark Roche of Notre Dame encouraging pro-life Catholics to vote for John Kerry. This year the story is similar. Former Reagan administration Assistant Attorney General Doug Kmiec and Duquesne University Law Professor Nicholas Cafardi, both of whom claim to be opponents of abortion, have received plenty of media attention for their support of Barack Obama.

Their arguments are the same ones put forward in 2004. They have not improved with age.

Continue reading here...

Supporting Pro-life ministries

Towards the end of my talk Sunday morning on the pro-life issue I mentioned several ways that you could demonstrate your support of the pro-life cause by praying, fasting, donating to ministries like Stand True and Abort73.

I want to direct your attention to this store, where you get to support an organization that works tirelessly to raise awareness about the horrors of abortion in the lives of this nation's teenagers by purchasing ts, hoodies, and other cool stuff.

So, be awesome, support a pro-life organization, and get some sweet stuff while you do it.

The love of the Father...

I cry pretty easily. I'm serious. Cool Runnings? The movie about the Jamaican bob-sled team? Gets me every time when they pick up the bob-sled and carry it across the finish line.

There are some things that make me cry in a different way, and this video is one of those things that touched my soul and made my stomach feel funny. In a good way. Give up 5 minutes of your time and be refreshed as you reflect on what God's love for you caused Him to do.

eReaders

I'm kind of a tech nerd, but I don't have the cash flow to get everything that catches my eye. This is one product that I will probably save up for and purchase when it gets released, if I don't purchase a similar product before this one comes out.

This combines two of my favorite things- reading and technology- amazing.

For those unfamiliar with eReaders, such as the Amazon Kindle or Sony Digital Book, these products are digital books which can hold up to 200 full length books on its hard drive. You are able to shop online at the device's online store and purchase books for less than $10 which download immediately onto your device. These devices read like actual paper, reducing the brightness fatigue that your eyes suffer from reading on a computer screen. The features on the various products vary, but with the Kindle you can highlight certain portions of the text, place a bookmark so that you can resume reading where you last left off, and adjust the size of the displayed text. They're incredible little machines that avid readers are sure to love. Christmas anyone?

Pro-life voters voting for pro-choice candidates?

Here is an excellent article explaining this issue.

Ballot Box Blues

Hypothetically, what if the choice in an election comes down to two candidates--one who supports abortion policies, and the other who supports an unjust war? Whom would--whom should--you choose?

Commenter "GloriousRuin" passes along this imaginative dialogue by political philosopher J. Budziszewski that I think is quite helpful. There's probably no better way to get a quick introduction to the distinction between formal and material cooperation than this dialogue!

If I may be permitted one additional comment: I don't like the label "single-issue voter" and don't use it to describe my position. I'm not sure there's a better term--but the fact remains that there are many issues that are of concern to me.

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Parents Often Unaware of Cyber-Bullying

Research indicates that as many as 75 percent of teens have been bullied online, but only one in 10 have reported the problem to parents or other adults, a new study shows.

The study, published in the September issue of The Journal of School Health, is the latest to sound the alarm about so-called cyber-bullying, which can occur on social networking sites and in e-mail and text messages. Sometimes cyber-bullying involves taunting or threatening e-mail or text messages or putting embarrassing pictures or personal attacks on teen networking sites like MySpace or Facebook.

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Ford's MyKey aims to help parents watch new drivers

This won't make too many teenagers happy, but parents will probably be thrilled.

Ford Motor Co. will introduce a feature for its vehicles, called MyKey, which is designed to help parents encourage their teenagers to drive more safely and efficiently, the automaker announced Monday.

The feature will even mute the radio until the teenager buckles up.

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Multitasking Teens May Be Muddling Their Brains

Doing several things at once can feel so productive. But scientists say switching rapidly between tasks can actually slow us down.

Even though modern technology allows people to perform more tasks at the same time, juggling tasks can make our brains lose connections to important information. Which means, in the end, it takes longer because we have to remind our brains what we were working on.

Zach Weinberg, a junior at Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School, sits in front of his computer in his family home in suburban Maryland.

Within the span of seconds, Zach switches between e-mail, iTunes, Facebook, a computer word puzzle game and messaging his buddy online. Somewhere amid the flurry, Zach manages to squeeze in some homework, too.

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Study Bible

Looking for a new study bible? Don't have one and want to purchase one that will help you grow in the knowledge of God's word and will help you understand the way that God wants you to live your life? This study bible might be the best means to those ends.

Christian leaders across the world are endorsing and using the newly released ESV Study Bible. It was just released for public sale October 15th, and pre-release orders exceeded 100,000! You can purchase this bible in a lot of places, but I found them heavily discounted here and here and here.

Not sure about which study bible to get? Here's a video that explains the details of the ESVSB.

While by no means is this the end-all be-all of study bibles, it is certainly an incredible resource that will help generations of God's children in their attempts to understand and apply His word to their lives.

Obama and Abortion

The issue of abortion is loaded in the US and in the evangelical church, but we must discuss it. John Mccain, despite his not-conservative-enough policy position on various issues for some of us to be really excited about him, is stridently pro-life and has a long voting record to support his claim, and for this reason, he has my vote.

Barrack Obama, on the other hand, has proven to be the most pro-abortion candidate to ever seek the office of president in this country. Below are links to several articles that detail both his record and his attempt to coverup his record to appear more pro-life than he is in reality.

Along these lines, as I mentioned in a previous post, some of the students here at Hillcrest are participating in the Day of Silent Solidarity on Tuesday, October 21st. I was sharing with Larry about this day last week and he asked me to speak on this issue Sunday morning, so this Sunday morning I am preaching on the value of life and what the church needs to be doing to promote a culture of life as a way of sharing the gospel with our neighbors and the larger contexts in which we live. This issue is the dominant moral issue of today, and evangelicals must not tire of defending the rights of the unborn despite the growing tide of pro-abortion policies and public officials.

Check out the below stories. They are truly eye-opening...

Obama and Infanticide
Not Cool: Obama's Pro-Abortion Stance
The Freedom of Choice Act
Obama's Abortion Extremism
A Helpful Summary Of Obama and the Abortion Issue

While I do not believe that there is a Christian health care policy, a Christian tax policy (except to pay Caesar what's his Romans 13:1-7), or a Christian energy policy, the issue of abortion is first and foremost a moral and theological issue, and the issue is settled by Scripture. I'll be discussing this and its implications Sunday morning.

Christians should only share the gospel and not worry about political issues like abortion

The following is from an email that I received from Bryan Kemper, founder of Stand True. He writes an essay once a week and the topic this week was the statement posed in the title of this post.

I cannot tell you how many pastors throw this at me as an excuse for not getting involved with pro-life work or even talking about it from the pulpit. It actually surprises me that a pastor would even try to justify his apathy and lack of involvement in standing up for life.

Obviously we all know that as a Christian s our main focus is to spread the Gospel and share the hope we have in Christ. We are commanded to “ Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to all creation.” Mark 16:15

The idea that taking a stand for the almost 4,000 children that are being ripped limb from limb every day by surgical abortion is contrary to the Gospel , is simply ludicrous. In fact, I would say that when we do not stand up for the voiceless or love our neighbor as ourselves, we are not truly preaching the Gospel.

I remember one pastor in particular who told me that I had no business telling anyone that abortion was wrong. He said I should only tell people about Jesus and nothing else. I laid out a situation for him to answer using his logic. What if you came upon a man beating a woman in an alley? Would you walk up to the man and tap him on the shoulder and tell him about Jesus or would you first stop the man from beating the women and make sure she was taken care of?

He tried to wiggle out of answering the question at first but eventually said he would first stop the man from harming the woman and make sure she was ok. I asked him why he would not just tell them man about Jesus and not worry about his behavior? He said because the woman was in imminent danger and needed to be rescued.

The fact is we are also called in Scripture to “Deliver those who are being taken away to death. And those who are staggering to slaughter, Oh hold them back. If you say, "See, we did not know this," Does He not consider it who weighs the hearts?” Proverbs 24:11-12

We are also called to "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.” Luke 10:27

We can also look at Matthew 25 where we are taught that when we do not feed the hungry, give water to the thirsty and clothe the naked then we are not doing that for Christ. I could fill this commentary with pages of Scripture references that would show us that preaching the Gospel is more than just mere words.

When babies are being killed by the thousands every day, are we loving our neighbor as ourselves when we ignore this? Is our neighbor just the guy who lives next door? Did the Good Samaritan stop to see if he knew the man in the ditch or ask God if he was called to a ditch ministry before he helped the man? No, he saw his fellow human person in distress and he stopped and helped him.

So many people tell me that their pastor will not talk about abortion from the pulpit. They don't want to talk about political issues or possibly offend anyone in the church.

Here is a question I would ask them: if you were told as you were walking up to the pulpit to deliver your sermon that a man with a knife was heading to the nursery to stab all the children in the nursery, would you warn people from the pulpit or would you say that the pulpit is only for preaching the Word ? Of course they would warn people, I don't know a single pastor in the world who would not jump up and immediately warn everyone about the danger the children were in.

If that same pastor were told before his sermon that they were opening a new abortion mill down the street where about 20 babies a day were going to be aborted daily, would he feel the same urgency to warn his congregation about the danger facing those children?

Most of the time it would have to go through some kind of committee or vote to see if the church wanted to have some kind of official outreach to that abortion mill. There would be so much red tape that it may take a year to even get an announcement in the bulletin about a possible ministry team being formed.

Are the children that would die in the nursery more valuable than the children that would die in the abortion mill? Why are we not just as horrified about children being killing in an abortion mill as we would be about children being killed in a church nursery?

There is no excuse for the apathy and lack of involvement of the church when it comes to abortion. We have allowed the government to politicize abortion to the point that we just don't pay attention any more. We are more than happy to let our votes on Election Day be our only action we ever take as we leave it up to politicians who never deliver on their promises.

Preaching the Gospel is not just leaving cheesy Bible tracts with a lousy tip on the table at Applebee's after church. Preaching the Gospel is not just saying “ Jesus loves you” to your friends as work after laughing at all their dirty jokes. Preaching the Gospel goes far beyond our words and must also include action. Feeding the poor, giving water to the thirsty and yes, speaking up for the voiceless IS preaching the Gospel.

What do you think?

Day of Silent Solidarity

If you have a facebook or myspace, you can go to the website for the day of silent solidarity and copy the html codes for banners like the one I put on here and spread the word about this day!

Engaging the Soul of Youth Culture

One of the responsibilities that I have as a youth pastor is to understand (as thoroughly as possible) the culture in which teenagers live. This culture is currently being affected by a philosophical construct called postmodernism. Postmodernism, in short, is a reaction to the certainty of various truth claims in all areas of life- art, architecture, literature, and spiritual or religious ideas. So, in a postmodern society, what's right for Christians and what's right for Hindus may be different, but neither is wrong, and both is right. There are no absolute truths that we can hang onto, so truth is relative. We are free to make up our own values, and since there is no absolute standard to judge ideas by, we are all right and none of us is wrong. I can believe the truth claims of Christianity, you can believe the truth claims of Islam, and we'll both get to the heaven that we believe exists.

This is a huge shift from the way previous generations viewed life and its impact on today's teenagers is monumental. It seems ridiculous, in part because it is, that opposite truth claims can both be true. But evangelical Christians are being affected by postmodern thought so much that 20% of evangelicals believe that truth is relative and that there are ways to God other than Jesus Christ.

I have read, and the student leadership team is currently reading, Engaging the Soul of Youth Culture by Walt Mueller. Walt runs the Center for Parent-Youth Understanding and is a great source of information on all things related to youth culture. This book is one that I'm highly recommending to all parents who read this. I have one extra copy that I can loan out if you want to read it, or you can purchase the book here or here.

Which is more dangerous?

Being drunk while driving? Being stoned while driving? Texting while driving? Research proved it...

And the winner is.....

Day of Silent Solidarity

Here's some more information about the Day of Silent Solidarity which I've copied and pasted from an email that I received from Stand True this week in the form of FAQs:

What if my school, teacher or administrator says no?
If they tell you that you cannot participate in the Pro-life Day of Silent Solidarity you need to contact our lawyers who will help you fight for your rights. Their contact information can be found on the web site under the legal help section. www.silentday.org

What if some one wants to talk to me about abortion or has a serious question?
While we are taking a vow of silence for the day we do not want to be legalistic about this. Last year many kids broke their silence to talk to girls who were considering abortion. We know of at least 16 of these high school girls who then cancelled abortion appointments and decided to keep their babies. Use your best judgment and speak if you need to. Some people may be just trying to harass you, while others may seriously need to talk to someone.

What do I pass out to people who want to talk to me.
The flyer is available for free download on the web site. You may use other pro-life literature along with the flyer, but the flyer is important to explain what you are doing. If you cannot afford to make copies of the flyer we can help by printing some for you.

Does passing notes, e-mail, im and texting count?
While this is up to you it would be great for you give all of this up to be in solidarity for those who will never be able to do these things. One day is nothing compared to what happens to them. Notes can be useful in some situation like ordering food and such, but should be used at a minimum.

- How can I help promote this event?
There are so many opportunities to promote this event, especially with the internet.
- You can download fliers to pass out from the web site at www.silentday.org
- You can join the Pro-life Day of Silent Solidarity MySpace and Facebook group and promote through those sites.
- Official Students Day of Silent Solidarity MySpace www.myspace.com/silenced12273
- Official Students Day of Silent Solidarity Facebook Group http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2248662014
- We have also created some banners for you to post on your web sites and blogs. Go to http://www.standtrue.com/pages/downloads/pldbanners.htm for the codes to post them on MySpace.
- .Invite your friends on Facebook to the official event at http://www.new.facebook.com/home.php#/event.php?eid=5669658602
- You are also encouraged to come up with other ideas to help get the message out about the Pro-life Day of Silent Solidarity. Some college groups have set up pro-life booths on campus during the day of silence to distribute literature

An adolescent 30 year old?

Yup. Sociologists have been tracking this development over the past several decades and it's now unmistakably clear that adolescence has extended itself well into the 20's and early 30's in some cases. There are more factors than can be discussed here that have contributed to this development, but the challenge to parents and to youth workers is clear: we need to understand the differences between the groups and minister to them accordingly.

Here is an article from Chap Clark, a very careful and thorough evaluator of adolescent trends in this country, which will give parents a clearer understanding of the stages of their children's development. The goal should be to try to understand these things to better understand where our children are in the developmental stage and make an honest attempt to help move them from one stage to the next.

Incidentally, this article explains some of the reasons that we have decided to have separate services for middle and high school students.

Jesus is a friend of mine

Ok- I'll apologize in advance if this offends anyone, but I just have to shake my head sometimes at church folks. Like, this video.

Great theology, horrendous music, outfits, melody, and everything else associated with this video. Just wow.