Republicans and Elena Kagan's confirmation hearings

I was seriously worried two months ago when Obama nominated Elena Kagan for Supreme Court Justice. Back then, no one seemed to care that she had zero experience as a Federal Court judge. (The crux of her experience was being dean of Harvard Law School.) Little or no courtroom experience aside, she has an  Xtreme liberal viewpoint which is so far to the left she almost falls off the scale.

Today, her hearings for confirmation begin. I am praying that Truth will come to light and that the Republicans who are even now poised for a fight  will dig in their heels and keep this woman off the Supreme Court bench. I shudder to think how my children and grandchildren would suffer under this liberal's "interpretation" of the laws of our land.

I did not see Face the Nation on CBS on Sunday, but this quote disturbs me greatly:

"I think you're going to see a brilliant woman, a brilliant legal mind, and you're going to see somebody who is going to be the 112th justice of the U.S. Supreme Court," said Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy on Sunday's "Face the Nation."
But that same argument was made by Justice Samuel Alito's supporters when he was nominated by President Bush in 2005. Alito was widely viewed as intellectually qualified and, as an appellate court judge, highly experienced. He too got the ABA's highest rating and had significant support from liberals -- including his liberal colleagues, who said he was intellectually honest, didn't have an agenda and was not an ideologue.
Nonetheless, then-Senators Barack Obama and Joe Biden, as well as current Judiciary Committee Chairman Leahy not only voted against Alito's nomination -- they also tried to mount a filibuster to block it.
On "Face the Nation" Sunday, Leahy deflected a question about the Democrats' shaky grounds for complaints about a possible Republican filibuster of Kagan, in light of their attempts to block Alito. Their efforts in 2006 were "symbolic at best," Leahy said.

It disturbs me as well as heartens me because I believe the Republicans will do the right thing by vetoing her confirmation. I pray so. We absolutely cannot have a Supreme Court Justice who has an agenda sitting on the bench. Kagan has an agenda, actually she has several. She has been very clear about it, too.

She has stated several times she wants the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" repealed. She is lesbian and has a chip on her shoulder concerning civil liberties, especially concerning GLBT. She is extreme pro-abortion. She is against the right to bear arms, she is pro-bussing (no matter how long a child must ride the bus) for desegregation. Some very strong views she wrote in some memos to Justice Thurgood Marshall whom she clerked for and whom she called her hero. She tried to blow-off her strong views as a "pipsqueak... working for  an 80-year-old giant in the law, and a person who, let us be frank, had very strong jurisprudential and legal views."

Sounds like someone trying to sweep something under the rug and doing a slight of hand, finger-pointing blame game, to me.

A Believer is beaten by her family in Somalia

 From Voice of the Martyrs ...

"A 17-year-old girl in the Gedo Region of Somalia was severely beaten by her family recently after they discovered she had converted to Christianity, according to Compass Direct News. Nurta Mohamed Farah, 17, was later taken to a doctor, who prescribed medication for a "mental illness." When she refused to abandon her Christian faith, her family forced her to take the medication."

How tragic this young woman is considered mentally ill because she believes in Jesus, and how doubly tragic her family resorted to beating the faith out of her. I cannot imagine what it would be like to have my family turn on me for what I believe. A young woman dependent upon her family doesn't have a recourse. Her family has been reading the Koran to her every day since May 4 because Muslims believe the Koran has healing powers. Can you imagine what it would be like to have read to you something that is so far removed from what you believe? How stressful that would be on a new believer, how confusing that could be.

I knew that things were bad for Christians in Muslim lands. I knew it is really bad for women. But, it seems a woman who converts has no mercy. 

BP Oil spill just keeps on gushing problems

I have a huge question in my mind. Have people suddenly become really stupid? This oil spill in the Gulf is the worst disaster I have ever seen. Not because of the initial impact, but because of the decades it will take to recover from it. We are not talking five or six years like the recovery from Hurricane Katrina, or Hurricane Ivan, or Camile, or Betsy. We are talking decades. Now there is An Event happening this weekend which goes beyond stupidity in my estimation.

I was going through my inbox and ran across this notice from Great NonProfits... Hands Across the Sand.

This Saturday, June 26, people all over the world will be joining hands on their local beaches in a show of solidarity against offshore oil drilling. The aptly-named Hands Across The Sand movement was founded by surfer and restauranteur Dave Rauschkolb in October of 2009, but the upcoming event may prove to be the largest event to date in light of the BP oil spill.

Hands Across The Sand is sponsored by many environmentally-minded nonprofit organizations, including the Sierra Club, Surfrider Foundation, Defenders of Wildlife, Rainforest Action Network and Center for Biological Diversity.

The thing is not against unsafe offshore drilling... just offshore drilling. I wonder if these "thousands" of people truly understand what they are against?

First off, there is the $300 billion in bills that can't be paid by the offshore oil drilling company workers. This of course wouldn't effect any of those who are joining hands because they are activists in the environmentally-minded  nonprofit organizations. Their pay checks aren't being effected so it isn't any concern of theirs if families whose livelyhood come from offshore drilling don't have food on the table or electricity or clean water because they can't pay their bills because papa or mama has been laid off due to lack of work. (Praise God from Whom all blessings flow that a Federal Court judge had the gumption to cancel the ill-advised moratorium set forth by a president who acts first then gets all the facts.)

Secondly, no more offshore exploratory drilling would cost more than 20,000 jobs according to a Bloomberg report. The average oil rig worker salary is between $35,000 and $60,000 so the economic impact for losing more than 20,000 jobs is more than $970 million dollars. In an economy which is only now returning from almost complete devastation because of Katrina, that kind of economic impact is staggering.

I am astounded how many people in this world care more for animals than they do for real people with real economic problems. Again, since it doesn't effect their own paychecks or their A/C or food on their tables, it's okay to try to set in motion something that will eventually make the cost of gasoline skyrocket. But, they don't see that. Just like boycotting BP gasoline stations. That is another rack up on stupidity.

The BP stations are not company owned, they are locally owned. The gasoline going into the BP station tanks is not from a BP refinery but from some other refinery--which ever refinery has the best price the distributor can find! I have personally seen Shell tankers at an Exxon station filling their underground tanks. Distributors buy the raw gasoline from refineries and then put the Brand additives into the tanker as it is being filled from a Shell refinery, or ExxonMobile refinery, or whatever other refinery. The sheer cost of freight to transport refined BP petroleum from somewhere else in the world to your local BP station would make the cost of one gallon of gas rise to an extremely high, uncompetitive price.

Come on people, wake up! Ask God for some wisdom when reading news stories or listening to them. Ask Him to give you discernment to differentiate between truth and lies. Ask God to give wisdom in the kinds of causes that will be best for His people and to bring glory to Him.

Nikki Haley is she really Christian--political whisper campaign

Here we go again... political whisper campaigns are nothing more than magnified gossip. Nikki Haley is an American Indian and converted when she was 24. She, her husband and her children go to a Methodist church in South Carolina, but people who support her opponent (including two pastors) are questioning her faith. Their main proof is her website which changed "God Almighty" to "Christ" where she talks about her faith.

Oh bother!

I am not surprised. These kinds of tactics were used blatantly on Sarah Palin. Things which were not at all true, but were twisted from some obscure facts. I would like to remind every Christian out there that Paul used every means he could to reach the lost. He said that he became a Jew for the Jews and a Gentile for the Gentiles.

I would also like to remind everyone out there that right after God said to honor Himself and the Sabbath, He said to Honor thy father and mother. These political saboteurs say, "she described her marriage in a Methodist church but did not mention that she and her husband also participated in a Sikh wedding ceremony, and that she continues to attend Sikh services with her family a few times a year." This is supposed to mean what exactly? She isn't Christian? Give me a break.

I am disgusted with the political shenanigans that are being foisted upon the American voters. I seriously doubt there is anything ethical or valuable in anything any of the campaigns have to say about their opponents.

It is the same gossip. We hear some juicy tidbit and can't wait to call a friend to ask for prayer for so-and-so because... oh, haven't you heard? Well, the way I heard it was...No wonder our churches are emptying. If we treat our siblings in such a way, who would ever want to worship with us?

Age of accountability

         The question of babies going to heaven and how old does someone have to be to be held accountable has been bandied about since probably Jonah's day. I'd like to take a quick look at that question...

         Take a look at Romans 7:7 Paul says "What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the contrary, I would not have KNOWN sin except through the Law. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, "You shall not covet." 8. But sin, taking opportunity by the commandment produced in me all manner of evil desire. For apart from the Law, sin was dead. 9. I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died.

         Absolutely All have sinned and fall short. This includes little babies and little children. However, in God's mercy and with Paul's eloquent teaching we learn that the Law as set down by Moses was to specifically convict of sin. As I'm sure you know any conscience can be numbed by constant justification and rationalization. Except babies and children only understand their immediate environment. I'm hungry. Feed me! I'm thirsty. I'm dirty or wet or just uncomfortable. I'm tired. Their world is filled with I...Me...Mine. As soon as their horizon broadens to incorporate understanding the difference between right and wrong only then can they begin to understand choices and free will. 

        So many have held to the belief that a spouse and children of the couple are saved just because one of the parents is saved. That is not true. 

        John 3:15 and everyone who looks up to him, trusting and expectant, will gain a real life, eternal life. 16 "This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. 17 God didn't go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. 18 Anyone who trusts in him is acquitted; anyone who refuses to trust him has long since been under the death sentence without knowing it. And why? Because of that person's failure to believe in the one-of-a-kind Son of God when introduced to him.

         I looked at several different versions and this one is The Message. I like it because it emphasizes each person is responsible for his/her own belief in Jesus the one and only. It also points out how crucial it is to salvation for a person to not only hear but to believe and to trust in Him. Babies don't have a clue how to believe in anything. Nor do they trust. How can they when they don't even have the strength to do much more than eat, sleep and cry.

         The whole point here is freedom of choice. When we believe in Jesus we are freely choosing to trust Him. A baby or small child has no such choices. They have to drink the milk given to them; accept the clothes put on them; sleep in the brand of diapers put on them; sit in the car seat they are put in; go where their mother drives them; listen to the kind of music the mother (or father or brother etc.) chooses...

         They live in a world of no choice whereas older children, teens, young adults, adults all live in a world of choices. We choose to believe Jesus or we choose not to believe. (And here's the sticky part) We choose to live a godly, Christian life or we choose to be a Sunday Christian. Life is all about choices.

Is there a "thought-nabber"?

I wandered over to Patsy Clairmont's blog this morning and was struck by her post "Duh?"


It reminded me of a story my Aunt Vonny told about my Aunt Mattie this week.

My Aunt Mattie is 96 years old and last week she called her sister at 9:30 pm on Saturday evening…

“Von? Hon, you and Lee will just have to go on to church without me this morning. I got up and have eaten breakfast and made my bed, but there’s just not enough time for me to get ready for church.”

“Mattie, its only 9:30 on Saturday evening. You just go back to bed and back to sleep until tomorrow morning… Sunday morning.”

True story!

Hannah -- a glimpse into a marvelous woman

Walk with me, if you will, though 1 Samuel 1 for a glimpse at what makes women tick.

There was a man...named Elkanah...and he had two wives…

Of course polygamy/bigamy is forbidden in the US and in most places around the world it isn't practiced -- men have wised up since the days of Solomon.  But there are a lot of things that men can be married to besides a woman.

A woman needs to know her man loves her above all others.  When a man spends long hours at work, at a hobby, working out, with "the boys" then there needs to be priority adjustment if the marriage is going to work.  When ...Elkanah sacrifices, he gave several shares of the meat to his wife Peninnah with all her sons and daughters; but, although he loved Hannah, he gave her only one share…

A husband needs to show his wife he loves her.  We are not told how Elkanah showed Hannah how much he loved her but he allowed her rival, Peninnah, to revile her and torment her because she had no children.  That doesn't show much love and allows conflict within the family.  No matter what the husband puts in place of his wife--hobby, children, work etc, this thing getting the attention the wife should have is reviling her and humiliating her.  It is torment to love someone and be treated as the "second" wife.  Year after year this happened...  It is worse when nothing changes.

Tears usually mean, "I need you to comfort me and show me how much I mean to you."  Once when she was in tears and would not eat, her husband said to her, "Hannah, why are you crying and eating nothing?  Why are you so miserable?  Am I not more to you than ten sons?"

In a word, Hannah said, “No.”

Why is that? Remember the song in Funny Girl, Sadie, Sadie, Married Lady? For a Jewish woman, getting married was what she was born for, and the next was having children, preferably boys with a few daughters sprinkled in for old age. It was everything. When a woman had no children, she was nothing and was made to feel to be nothing with hurtful, sly, and snide remarks from the other wives of the home and the village. It was always pointed out. “Oh, yes, you know Hannah. She’s the barren wife of Elkanah.” The barren one.

Today, we are not admonished in public. But, inside we wither just a bit with so much longing to have a baby. Women sometimes worry themselves sick which literally keeps them from getting pregnant. Is the husband more than ten sons? In a word, “No.” There is no comparison. A husband cannot replace a son, nor can a son replace a husband. It is a ridiculous thought and one I am sure earned Elkanah a withering glance through Hannah’s tears.

And Hannah rose up after eating and drinking. That word translated “rose up” or “rise up” is very interesting.  קוּם  qûm koom The meaning is full of action:  accomplish, confirm, continue, decree, make good, help, hold, (help to) lift up (again), make, X but newly, ordain, perform, pitch, raise (up), rear (up), remain, (a-) rise (up) (again, against), rouse up, set (up), (e-) stablish, (make to) stand (up), stir up, strengthen, succeed, (as-, make) sure (-ly), (be) up (-hold, -rising). Isn’t if fabulous the word UP is included. We all know Who is the Up-est of all Ups. She had decided to take some definitive action. She went to the Temple and made a vow.

This was one of the hardest things any woman could do. One has to wonder if she truly measured the cost of giving up her son after he was weaned. Samuel was around two or three when she grabbed his little hand and deposited him at Eli’s front door.

I imagine she probably wanted to say, “Here’s my drunken dream, Eli-man. What do you say to that?” But, I’m sure she didn’t. Can you imagine how difficult it would be to give up your son and only see him once a year? Can you imagine what it would be like to lovingly make clothes for him through out the year and then not see him wear them? To know he would out grow them? To love him, but not chat with him, or hear about the frogs and snakes he found? Nor ever to get a bouquet of wildflowers in a grubby little hand, or a hug that smelled of clean mud and a whiff of barn yard? Aching hearted, this woman gave up her rights of being Mother to give Israel a prophet who would anoint the kings of Israel. God must have settled her soul, and gave her comfort.

Women are resilient, persistent, hopeful, tolerant, prayer warriors. Those of us who put God first, know who has created us, given us our family, and who provides for us daily. There isn’t a man in the world who can fathom all the intricacies of women, or what makes them tick. So I am sorry if you clicked on this under false pretenses. The magnitude of a woman’s heart knows no boundaries, and the prayers of a righteous woman avails much.

Change is so difficult because--

I promise, I was not wasting time, but I was checking out Twitter and found a reference to this story about why Change is so hard to do -- it requires self-control and that commodity is expendable/exhaustible. Hmmm.

That sounds good, and the experiment with the chocolate chip cookies and the radishes seems to support the theory. But, there is something that just doesn't sound quite right about it.

If you indulge yourself with a chocolate chip cookie, you are supposed to be able to do some task for a longer period of time than if you exert self-control and eat radishes while the savory aroma of chocolate chips, all melty and warm and gooey floats about you.

This is one of the things that I had problems with in my Social Psychology class in college. So many of the things that these social psychologists "test" with their experiments completely leave out the God-factor in their experiments. They either do not know, or forget that self-control is part of the Fruit of the Spirit. If a person asks God for help with a task that has to be done, but seems insurmountable, then the task does become easier to do.

I have found that God will never do a task for me if whatever job He has set for me to do contributes to my growth in the eternal scope of things. He will provide things for me supernaturally which I am constantly amazed at, but I keep thinking that God is sitting on His throne and is jogging on the inside (laughing) at some of these crazy experiments that we humans come up with in order to understand the human Psyche.

Pass the cookies, please.

The Man who never was

Saw a story on the Military Channel last night, actually I had DVR'd it. I just love that feature on DishNet. 


Quite compelling story of a deception one man pulled on Hitler who had a military bent bordering on fanatic (big surprise, that) to protect all the land he had captured in the war. 


The Allies were going to come across the Mediterranean Sea from North Africa and take one of three places, Sicily,  Sardinia, or through the Balkans. Which ever route taken, they wanted Hitler to retreat from the area so it would be easier to take the place. It was decided that Sicily would be the best because it would open up the traffic lanes for safer supply lines as well as moving troops about. 


The key was to deceive Hitler into thinking the Allies were ready to take Sardinia which would cutoff supplies to Rommel in North Africa altogether. Either Sicily or Sardinia would be tactic coups.


Major William Martin of the Royal Marines fit the ticket. He had died of pneumonia and pathologists knew that this kind of death would make it appear that Maj. Martin had drowned at sea. It was called, "Operation Mincemeat" 


He was dressed in his military uniform, his briefcase filled with all kinds of official documents, oh so subtly directing German eyes toward Sardinia -- one statement in a letter talked about "bringing a can of sardines with him." He had a pompous letter from his papa, a few folded and refolded love letters from his sweetheart Pam, and an invitation to a gala event which could have had the house of cards come tumbling down if the Germans had been paying close attention.


Thus he was released off the coast of Spain. He was found and the "top secret" documents were read, copied, and ferried to German headquarters all as planned by one ingenious  Lt. Cmdr. Ewen Montagu, a Royal Navy intelligence officer. Major William Martin of the Royal Marines, was a rounding success. He deserved medals of honor except...


Major Martin was never in the military. He had been refused for service. He was homeless, and he was an alcoholic. If he had not died from pneumonia, he would have died from liver disease. His family had allowed the use of his corpse as long has his real name was never revealed.


It is the only time in history that a world of freedom was saved over a man's dead body. He was dead, but he saved many lives. Thank you, Glyndwr Michael for lending your body for the pursuit of freedom. Job well done.

Memorial Day… lest we forget!

This is going around in email. I’ve seen it before and it never fails to bring tears to my eyes. Let us never forget our true American Heroes.

 

 

It is the
VETERAN,
not the preacher,
who has given us freedom of religion.
It is
the VETERAN,
not the reporter,
who has given us freedom of the press.
It is
the VETERAN,
not the poet,
who has given us freedom of speech.
It is
the VETERAN,
not the campus organizer,
who has given us freedom to assemble.
It is
the VETERAN,
not the lawyer,
who has given us the right to a fair trial.
It is
the VETERAN,
not the politician,
Who has given us the right to vote.


It is the
VETERAN who
salutes the Flag,

It is
the
VETERAN
who serves
under the Flag,

 

ETERNAL
REST GRANT THEM O LORD, AND LET PERPETUAL LIGHT SHINE UPON
THEM.

God
Bless them all!!!

 

O Almighty God, please grant protect of millions of angels on our troops serving here and on foreign ground. Thank you, God for these mighty men of valour who paid the price for our freedom and the freedom of those in other countries. God bless America, land of the free. Stand beside her and guide her, forgive her God. Make us godly again, help us to bring you Glory, AMEN.

Technorati Tags: Memorial Day,salute to our fallen soldiers

Don't Ask Don't Tell--bull's eye on the forehead

It seems that this 1990's law just keeps on taking the hits. Fox News reports a compromise has been reached. No details have been released since the "negotiations are sensitive".

Defense Secretary Robert Gates is in favor of repealing this law. I'm wondering if he has even thought about how this will effect the troops? I am mostly protected against the virulent platitudes of the homosexuals in hot pursuit of absolution and approval for their lifestyle. Why else would they spend millions of dollars on their agenda making American believe there are more of them than there really are?

Back in the 2000 Census, less than 4% of the US population admitted to living the homosexual lifestyle, yet they would have us believe that fully 10% of the population are homosexual. I kept hearing 10% and 12% being bandied about from news media. I kept hearing all kinds of reports of horror stories of how gays were being mistreated which made it appear that the problem was much worse than it actually was. (Please take note--I am not saying homosexuals should be mistreated!!!)

Now, we are living in a society in which the media are pushing the homosexual agenda. Amazing Race usually has at least one team of homosexuals. Stories about them always make the evening news and the morning papers. There is a larger force at work than just approval of a lifestyle that God proclaims is an abomination.

The lifestyle is evil. The people are deceived by Satan into believing they were "born that way," or that they "can't change what God made." Poppycock.

Robert Gates has no clue what repealing this will do to our troops. This will raise all kinds of problems with some of the misguided riff-raff which makes it into our military. The vast majority of our military are truly heroes and gentlemen. There are a few who are not. Trouble will come from the few, not the many.

My question remains: Why must we condone what goes on behind closed bedroom doors? Why do they feel it necessary to announce to all the world what they do?

If you want some stomach-churning stuff, just read Leviticus 18. It plainly states God finds the practice of this lifestyle abhorrent and an abomination. It is what our Sunday School lesson was on this past Sunday. As I read the background passages, I became more and more nauseated. I am glad that even the discussion of sin makes me nauseous. But, isn't it sad that we must be taught what is sin in God's eyes? Isn't it just plain awful that we Christians don't practice what God preaches?

I did some study on this god Molech (Maw-lekh). I was astounded at what came up. Somehow I landed on GayChristian101.com. This was an eyeopener for me, and yet I know I shouldn't be surprised. Here we see what is being taught as truth.

These demon gods of ancient times required baby sacrifices and fertility orgies, even having male and female temple prostitutes. Skipping right over the baby sacrifices, this website teaches that the sexual intercourse rituals practiced by the "worshipers" of the demon god Molech were not homosexual acts. [shock]

God specifically states that a man lying with a man as he would a woman is an abomination. It is Plain Speaking, a black and white statement of sin. This website says that Leviticus 18 "simply does not say that homosexuality is a sin." And that is a lie, because it does.

I shouldn't be shocked, but I am. I should know by now that people will read what they want to in scripture, and will twist God's words to match their own agenda.

Leviticus teaches  Lev 18:29  For anyone who does any of these disgusting things, even the persons who are doing them, shall be cut off from the midst of their people. 

Yet, there is forgiveness for the repentant persons. Manasseh was Hezekiah's son and offered up his sons (notice the plural?) to be passed through the fire. This is offering up to Molech for he was the fire god and his belly held the hottest fires which when the baby was placed in the idol's hand would roll off the hands into the fire to be burned...alive.  And Manasseh repented. 2 Chronicles tells the story. He was hooked by the Assyrians, meaning that they pierced his flesh with metal hooks and dragged him to Babylon. That is when he sought the face of God and was humbled exceedingly. He repented. He was given back his throne and he knew that Jehovah is God. He went about undoing everything he had done and he reigned for 55 years. But, he never got the sons who burned in the fires of Molech back. How he must have grieved over what he had done. But, he was forgiven.


Just as he did abominations and was forgiven, so too are we forgiven. Though our sins be as scarlet, the blood of Jesus makes them white as wool. While we are waiting for our Bridegroom to come fetch us, we should be about our Father's work which He prepared for us. Our works do not save us, make no mistake. However, we will wear bright white linen which are our righteous acts. let's be sure our heavenly garments cover us properly!


Photo by Marion Ruben

Life drainers and life fillers

Ask God to manage you time. He is worthy of that kind of trust and that task. He reminds me all the time of this, but I somehow have to be reminded daily in numerous different ways.

***Disclaimer***
Don't worry, I asked Angela Hunt if I could use this piece at our ladies retreat way back a long time ago in a galaxy..uh, er... state far away. She said I could use it however, just give her the credit. AND how! She is a wonderful author and quite gifted with short points as well as completely fleshed-out works.
******

Life-drainer: accepting a position on my neighborhood's board of directors.

Life-filler: starting a neighborhood book club (where we frequently discuss spiritual themes).

Life-drainer: working seven days a week.

Life-filler: taking a Sabbath and keeping it holy.

Life-drainer: bad books, bad movies, bad TV.

Life-filler: good books, good movies, great TV.

Life-drainer: trying to exercise someone else's spiritual gift.

Life-filler: exercising mine.

Life-drainer: joining a fitness club.

Life-filler: hitting the treadmill every morning while watching good TV.

Life-drainer: trying to be all things to all people.

Life-filler: finding my God-ordained niche and filling it.

Miscellaneous life-drainers: purposeless meetings, trying to maintain fake nails, window shopping, foolish arguments, email chain letters and urban myths.

Miscellaneous life-fillers: any time spent encouraging children, a good hair cut, time spent with my hubby, shopping with a purpose, riveting debates with friends who speak the truth in love, going back to school to keep learning.

We need never go a few days without being reminded that our time is worth a lot. How do we get ourselves in a Life Drainer situation? Does the word "No" mean anything any more?

I went on the hunt to find Angela to let her know I was using this again, and got side-tracked by my friend Wayne Carlan's new post "Help me Tom Cruise" which is hilarious, but you'll have to go to my Facebook page to see it because I can't figure out how to link a Facebook entry on a blog post. Just when I think I've got some savvy in this technology thing, I find out I'm not as smart as I'd like to think I am. That was the first sidetrack, then I notice that Jayce O'Neal said something to me on Twitter with a link to his new video. So, of course I must watch it and answer back, then I see several Tweets by Newt Gingrich I have to reTweet because they are so good, I think of something that is good to Tweet, I notice something on Tammie Rigney's wall that I want to Tweet. By this time there are almost another 100 Tweets to look at. Which I do.

My daughter calls to tell me that my phone is out again. For some reason, when it rains, our phone goes out. No clue why. Now, I've got to get the phone guy here to fix that problem.

I write my post for Everyday Christian and send that in. It is now 1:22 pm and I have yet to start on the task God told me to do last night. I wonder if it is procrastination or if I'm just bubble-headed today.... Hey! no cracks about that! God is good enough with His practical jokes on me.

Whenever it looks like rain or it is raining when we go to church, the conversation is, "Should we take the umbrella?" "Naw, it isn't far and we won't melt." But yesterday, I took my umbrella because it was raining. All the other times in the past months and months, God turned the faucet off so we could go into church or out of church without getting wet. Yesterday, God looked in the back seat and saw the umbrella. What happened when I put the car in park? Whoosh! The bottom dropped out of the clouds and God said, "Okay, Baby, you brought the umbrella, you use the umbrella!"

Don't you just love it when God "gently" reminds you that when you trust Him, He will take care of you? So do I. And I especially love it when He does it in such a funny way! He has assured me in many different ways that He will help when I ask and give Him enough elbow room to work. Sometimes my faith for this is huge and sometimes it gets lost in a tea cup. No matter how large or small, God is faithful and true.

How to give your cat a pill

Anyone that has had to give a cat a pill or drops or any kind of medicine has had all kinds of trouble making the creature understand that Medicine is Good, being sick is Bad, and Medicine will cure the Sick Kitty. Cats just don't get it. If you really want to know what works, watch this video. However, it is NOT as easy as the video makes it look.

We cannot take our cat to the vet without a huge ruckus. People who are stopped at the red lights next to us crane their necks, positive that we are some how abusing children in the back seat. Our cat can be heard over the boom-ba-boom sounds of the loudest music. He is never in tune or sync which makes the pain all the more unbearable.

Having to undergo this torture reminded me of this piece I've had for eons which still makes me laugh until tears stream down my face. My cheeks hurt even now... I hope you enjoy as well. I do not know who wrote the thing. Laughing is Good. It is Jogging on the Inside. Do not laugh while giving your cat a pill. Cats just do not like jogging whether it is on the inside or the outside.

How to give a cat a pill…
1) Pick cat up and cradle it in the crook of your left arm as if holding a baby. Position right forefinger and thumb on either side of cat's mouth and gently apply pressure to cheeks while holding pill in right hand. As cat opens mouth, pop pill into mouth. Allow cat to close mouth and swallow.
2) Retrieve pill from floor and cat from behind sofa. Cradle cat in left arm and repeat process.
3) Retrieve cat from bedroom and throw soggy pill away.
4) Take new pill from foil wrap, cradle cat in left arm holding rear paws tightly with left hand. Force jaws open and push pill to back of mouth with right fore-finger. Hold mouth shut for a count of ten.
5) Retrieve pill from goldfish bowl and cat from top of wardrobe. Call spouse from garden.
6) Kneel on floor with cat wedged firmly between knees. Hold front and rear paws firmly. Ignore low growls emitted by cat. Get spouse to hold head firmly with one hand while forcing wooden ruler into mouth. Drop pill down ruler and rub cat's throat vigorously.
7) Retrieve cat from curtain rail. Get another pill from foil wrap. Make note to buy new ruler and repair curtains. Carefully sweep shattered Doulton figures from hearth and set to one side for gluing later.
8) Wrap cat in large towel and get spouse to stretch out flat on top of cat with head just visible from below arm-pit. Put pill in end of drinking straw. Force mouth open with pencil and blow down drinking straw.
9) Check label to make sure pill is not harmful to humans. Drink glass of water to take taste away. Apply Band-Aid to spouse's forearm and remove blood from carpet with cold water and soap.
10) Retrieve cat from neighbor's shed. Get another pill. Place cat in cupboard and close door onto neck to leave head showing. Force mouth open with dessert spoon. Flick pill down throat with elastic band.
11) Fetch screwdriver from garage and put door back on hinges. Apply cold compress to cheek and check records for date of your last tetanus shot. Throw tee-shirt away and fetch new one from bedroom.
12) Ring fire brigade to retrieve cat from tree across the road. Apologize to neighbor who crashed into fence while swerving to avoid cat. Take last pill from foil-wrap.
13) Tie cat's front paws to rear paws with garden twine and bind tightly to leg of dining table. Find heavy duty pruning gloves from shed, force cat's mouth open with small spanner. Push pill into mouth followed by large piece of filet steak. Hold head vertically and pour pint of water down throat to wash pill down.
14) Get spouse to drive you to the emergency room. Sit quietly while doctor stitches fingers and forearm and removes pill remnants from right eye. Stop by the furniture store on way home to order new table.
15) Arrange for SPCA to find a new home for cat and ring local pet shop to see if they have any hamsters.

listen to ‘How to give your cat a pill’ on Audioboo

Silly Tweet? Absurd Police?

Here we have a guy who was mad at the snow.


Yes. That's correct, he's mad at the snow which closed Robin Hood Airport (yes, that's the name and did I mention all this takes place in England?) Because the airport is closed and he's ticked off, so he tweets his anger and frustration ending the 140 characters with "...otherwise I'm blowing the airport sky high!" 


Does that bear any resemblance to a joke? Hmmmm Nope. Not at all.


The police show up at his work, handcuff him and take him to the precinct for a seven hour interrogation. He was arrested for a bomb threat. 


"...otherwise I'm blowing the airport sky high!" 


Yes. That is exactly what it looks like. A bomb threat. After reading all the sympathetic claptrap comments patting him on the back, urging him to appeal, starting a legal fund for him, I got fed up to my flaming neck. This guy actually thinks his civil liberties were violated and he had about 100 people agreeing with him. Poppycock!


How can anyone joke about something like this and then blame the police for being johnny-on-the-spot with to investigate the threat? Apparently, a lot of people can. The comments are quite indicative of just how far down the human race has sunk into the mire of politically correct horse manure. 


I opine that anyone who breaths a threat against any public or private institution, against any individual or group should suffer precisely the same consequence this guy is suffering. In fact, I don't think the £1,000 he was fined and the additional out of pocket £1,000 was enough penalty. It isn't funny.


Anyone who lets off steam with wild threats in social media is disturbed and possibly deranged. 


How often does it need to hit the news services that a person loses a job because of their stupid remarks disparaging their boss on their blog... Facebook... Twitter... where ever before people wise up? How many times does a naked picture or suggestive photo have to show up on every school kid's iPhone for cool jets to reign supreme? People! Quit acting like a chicken with its head cut off. The reason the thing flops around is because it doesn't have a head!



Job 28:20  Where then does wisdom come from, and where is the place of understanding? 21  Yea, it is hidden from the eyes of all living, and concealed from the birds of the heavens; 22  the Place of Ruin and Death say, We have heard its fame with our ears. 23  God knows its way, and He knows its place. 

What price integrity?

I was so disappointed Sunday night that the Cowboys did not win the Amazing Race 16. Talk about an extreme class act, and letting Jesus' light shine you've got it all in these two men.


I am a huge fan of the Amazing Race. I am usually tired and thirsty after watching each show because the endurance level of this race is up there around the Olympic stratus. Although, the training these racers go through probably isn't on the same scale. I have to admire anyone who would attempt this race simply because it puts a magnifier upon your character and every flaw, no matter how minute, is magnified for all the world to see. 


For the first time since I've been watching the Race, I have been so completely captivated by a team that I amaze myself. For once, the Race wasn't just a Sunday evening pastime, it was something I actually prayed  about. Some would say, how stupid is that? Especially when the Race was already in the can by the time the first leg aired on TV. Oh, well. If I can pray for our President and for actors, I can pray for a team on the Amazing Race.


Jet and Cord McCoy proved themselves sons of the King by their extremely high moral and ethical standards throughout the race. James 1:22 Be ye doers of the Word and not hearers only, comes to mind. They never once acted in anyway that would shame Jesus. 


The last leg of the Race proved something about them that shamed me because I kept telling Jet to run through the dude. He didn't listen to me or his brother, Cord. There was a virtual maze that one team member had to guide the other team member through. It wasn't hard, but the Cowboys got to Lucas Films where the virtual maze was located several minutes later than the Gay Brothers got there. Cord guided brother Jet all the way through to the final challenge on the second level and Jordan was standing in his way. 


Jet stood there while Cord kept saying, "Can you just walk through him?"


"Nope. I'm not going to do that. He's right in front of me and I won't knock him over," Jet replied. 


And he didn't. He stood patiently behind Jordan while his brother Dan tried to figure out what the message was flashing by on the computer screen. 


I kept shouting, "Go around him! Step over him! Good grief! I would. It's a MILLION DOLLARS, man!" 


But Jet stood patiently until Cord persuaded him to sidle around Jordan. Then suddenly the message started flashing by Cord to figure out. 


Jet proved something to all the world, the price of integrity is more than a million dollars and he wouldn't be seduced. He could have won $1 Million by simply bowling over his opponent, but that price was too high to pay. Astounding!


I wonder how many Christians can look into the camera of the world and say, "I stand here with a clean conscience, completely blameless before God in that I did not defame my Lord or myself by reaching for a pile of money at the cost of my integrity and God's honor."


Was it costly? Hell no. Not costly at all when our real home has streets paved with gold and gates of priceless pearls, walls of translucent gold and daily wear is the righteousness of the saints!

The evolution of Mom

The following appeared in the February 1998 issue of Parenting.

Yes, parenthood changes everything. But parenthood also changes with each baby. Here, some of the ways having a second and third child differs from having your first:
Your Clothes

1st baby: You begin wearing maternity clothes as soon as your OB/GYN confirms your pregnancy.
2nd baby: You wear your regular clothes for as long as possible.
3rd baby: Your maternity clothes are your regular clothes.
The Baby's Name

1st baby: You pore over baby-name books and practice pronouncing and writing combinations of all your favorites.
2nd baby: Someone has to name their kid after your great-aunt Mavis, right? It might as well be you.
3rd baby: You open a name book, close your eyes, and see where your finger falls. Bimaldo? Perfect!
Preparing for the Birth

1st baby: You practice your breathing religiously.
2nd baby: You don't bother practicing because you remember that last time, breathing didn't do a thing.
3rd baby: You ask for an epidural in your 8th month.
The Layette

1st baby: You prewash your newborn's clothes, color-coordinate them, and fold them neatly in the baby's little bureau.
2nd baby: You check to make sure that the clothes are clean and discard only the ones with the darkest stains.
3rd baby: Boys can wear pink, can't they?
Worries

1st baby: At the first sign of distress - a whimper, a frown - you pick up the baby.
2nd baby: You pick the baby up when her wails threaten to wake your firstborn.
3rd baby: You teach your 3-year-old how to rewind the mechanical swing. Activities

1st baby: You take your infant to Baby Gymnastics, Baby Swing, and Baby Story Hour.
2nd baby: You take your infant to Baby Gymnastics.
3rd baby: You take your infant to the supermarket and the dry cleaner.
Going Out

1st baby: The first time you leave your baby with a sitter, you call home 5 times.
2nd baby: Just before you walk out the door, you remember to leave a number where you can be reached.
3rd baby: You leave instructions for the sitter to call only if she sees blood.
At Home

1st baby: You spend a good bit of every day just gazing at the baby.
2nd baby: You spend a bit of every day watching to be sure your older child isn't squeezing, poking, or hitting the baby.
3rd baby: You spend a little bit of every day hiding from the children.

Praying for our Country

  The National Day of Prayer...


Father in Heaven, I humbly ask you to reach out to our President, and to those in Congress, and to those who sit on the benches of the Supreme Court to pour Yourself into their hearts. Please reveal yourself to them as you did to Moses. Help them to see the far reaching consequences of their actions and decisions. Give them wisdom beyond human understanding, but wisdom that comes straight from You. Give them a peacefulness that is so satisfying that the human soul craves it beyond food or rest when they make decisions and act according to Your will. Take their peace and their sleep from them when they are tempted to tread a path which ends in ungodly disaster. Help them to know the difference and why. Help them to realize beyond doubt that it is only You who is in control and that the relationship with You has eternal impact.


Holy LORD, King of the Universe, I ask that you please forgive this Nation for unseemly, ungodly actions. Please forgive our cavalier attitude toward life, and toward justice. Give the Bride of Christ godly wisdom so that we follow You, stepping where You step, sitting on Your feet. Guard our thoughts, O, LORD. Guard our tongues, let only that which will ignite a fire for You pass lips which You have cleansed, and let ears hear Your message, deaf to that which seduces away from Your path.


Father, I pray for the Lost of this country. We are known as a Christian Nation, help us to act like it. Make tender the hardened hearts of the Lost so that we may reach them. Above all, help us to recognize those who do not know You as those whom You greatly desire to know and tuck under Your wings of refuge so they may drink in the Living Water and be satisfied.


Give us the grace of forgiveness and the ability to give that grace to all who wrong us tempered with Your wisdom to know when to fight and when to let go. Give us the strength everyday to put on Your whole armor. Help us to recognize the deceitful seductions of the Evil One. Your kingdom come. Your will be done.


In Jesus name, AMEN.

God and Atonement

The difference between a saved person and an unsaved person is Jesus rose from the dead. 

The saved person knows that Jesus not only died, but also rose from the dead. The Old Testament saint hoped for it. The unsaved person does not believe it.

The crux is that God had to be satisfied which is why there must be atonement:

kâphar כּפר  kaw-far'

A primitive root; to cover (specifically with bitumen); figuratively to expiate or condone, to placate or cancel: - appease, make (an) atonement, cleanse, disannul, forgive, be merciful, pacify, pardon, to pitch, purge (away), put off, (make) reconcile (-liation).

To say that the unsaved person must pay for his sins is wrong because we all know that we cannot. There is nothing that we can do that will pay for our sins. Burning in Hell does not pay for our sins. It is punishment for not believing God, but it does not pay for the sins because only a perfect sacrifice would atone, satisfy, appease the perfect and holy God Almighty. Jesus was the only perfect human and willing sacrifice.

That takes care of the first part of the requirement which is payment of the debt of sin’s wages. 

The second part, victory over death, was achieved when God raised Jesus from the dead. Only then could the Old Testament saints rise from the dead and walk about Jerusalem (Matthew 27:52-53), only then was the Door to Heaven created so that all who believe in Jesus may enter into God’s holy presence.

Jesus bought the whole world’s debt. There are too many verses that state this. Buying the ticket does not automatically put a person inside the gates of Disneyland. A person must use the ticket. A person must believe the ticket is good in order to use the ticket. Chapter 11 of Hebrews indicates numerous people who used their ticket.

Abel used his ticket and offered a better sacrifice than Cain. Enoch used his ticket by living a life that was pleasing to God so that he was translated by God. Abraham used his ticket by obeying God’s command to go, and he went.

I used my ticket by declaring before God and my whole church that I believed Him. I believed that He sent His only Son to die on the cross to pay for my sins and that God raised Him from the dead on the third day; and I know that He shall one day raise me from the physical death to be with Him forevermore.

Just because you have a ticket does not mean that you will take the trip. You must first believe the ticket is real, believe that it will do what it is meant to do and then you must use the ticket. 

Redefining the debate of Christianity vs Homosexuality

I just read one of the best discussions on the public debate that homosexuality is a sin argument. 


Of course we Christians know it is a sin, but we are all sinners. That is where Trevin Wax says the debate is lost by Christians. He points out that in the Larry King show discussion Jennifer Knapp asked the question (loosely paraphrased here) So we are all sinners, then why are you judging me and I'm not judging you? 


He says that we should go back to basics and focus on repentance instead of the sin. All I can say is WOW! Isn't this what we've been taught since Primary in Sunday School? All have sinned and come short of the Glory of God. Which is the ultimate reason we should repent and turn to Him for only He has made the one perfect sacrifice. Thank you, God! Thank you.


Trevin Wax also points out that we should not allow ourselves to be defined by our sexuality. This is what I've been preaching for years and years. The main thing I hate that homosexuals do is that stick out there hand and say, "Hi I'm _____, and I'm gay." So? I do not want to know what you do behind a closed bedroom door! But, since you bring it up... I'm celibate because God declared certain things concerning Man and Woman and one of those things is that sexual intimacy is between a man and his wife and no others. There is the blessing, and it is sin otherwise. Since we all sin, we all must repent. Being celibate is not who I am, nor am I defined by my singleness, or that I am female, yet all of those things are part of me.


What truly aggravates me is that these people (both those who have loved ones who are homosexual and those who practice homosexuality), are in my face flaunting it and calling me judgmental when they exhibit a huge intolerance for literal Scripture and those of faith before me. The so-called Christian homosexual declares that everyone since Moses has misunderstood the Bible and the Biblical principle dealing with same gender sex. The arrogance of this is distressing to me. It distresses me because I know that they have bought into Satan's lies.


Satan has deceived them for one reason which is to deflate and putrefy the Christian witness. When someone is struggling with same gender attraction, it is a sign of something much deeper than sex. It is a sign of misdirected esteem, a lack of deep Biblical roots, and a desperate searching for acceptance and love. That cuts me to the heart. I weep for them because they do not understand just how much God loves them, and because of His Son, accepts them just where they are. Just as I am without one plea but that Thy blood was shed for me. How incredibly wonderful that is. 


We Christians, who know better, should keep David's Psalm 39 in mind. 
Psalm 39:1  To the chief musician, to Jeduthun. A Psalm of David. I said, I will keep my ways from sinning with my tongue; I will keep my mouth with a muzzle while the wicked are before me.


We would do well to put a muzzle on judgment and focus on repentance...