Singing

“Help me out here. I still don’t get it.”

“It’s really not that hard to understand-it’s all about a woman having control of her own body, not allowing the Government to dictate how she should live her life.”

“So a fetus is…not a baby?

“It’s just a fetus-not viable-it cannot survive outside of the woman’s body, so legally, it is not a baby. Life begins at birth-before that, it is a parasite.”

“Singing.”

“What?”

“My friend Lara is pregnant-I saw her singing to the parasite.”



Actually, Lara is not her real name, but tonight 'Lara' gave birth to a baby boy-is ten pounds a big baby?
No matter what the death advocates may believe, I believe that this little ten pound baby was alive, honest and truly, since conception. Abortion is legal in our country, to our national shame.
Legal isn't always morally right-slavery was legal, and the very political group which fought to keep slavery the law of the land embraces Abortion as a civil right. It's not a 'civil' (as in civilized) right-it's a moral wrong. And someday, by the Grace of God, Abortion will be abolished. There will be no abortion clinics in the Millennial Kingdom. If it will be outlawed then, it should be outlawed NOW. Let's try to live up to the standards of God, even if we fail. We should at the very least TRY not to kill our own babies. Women and Men are made in the image of God, which is why murder is a sin. In the New American Standard Bible the sixth commandment reads: "¹³“You shall not murder."
Murder belies intent. No woman 'accidentally' has an abortion-there is intent, and that makes it murder, no matter how the death advocates scream that there is no existence before birth, so there is no one who could BE murdered.
You wouldn't convince Lara of that. That baby is huge!

Remember the Fallen

When I was young, possibly in fourth or fifth grade, we were required to memorize "Flanders Fields." I wonder if my children have even heard of this poem. The schools today might consider it to promote patriotic feelings toward war, and for many, any war is a bad war.

In Flanders Fields

By John McCrae

In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly.

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved, and were loved, and now we lie

In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields.

If you are unaware of the significance of the poppy on this holiday or the background of Memorial Day, please visit this site to increase your knowledge.

Also, today at 3:00 pm your local time, The White House Commission on Remembrance is promoting the spirit of unity and remembrance through observance of The National Moment of Remembrance, to remind us to remember the sacrifices of America's fallen from the Revolutionary War to the present and to recognize those who served and those who continue to serve our great nation.

If you have the time and ability, please take advantage of your city or town or parks and recreation organizations which are very likely hosting some remembrance activity.

Have a wonderful Memorial Day.

le

The Good Old Younger Days

12 “For you will go out with joy
And be led forth with peace;
The mountains and the hills will break forth into shouts of joy before you,
And all the trees of the field will clap their hands.
Isaiah 55:12

I just renewed a memory, and it’s pretty neat. Back in the old ‘Guard days’ when I was a new Christian I fell in with good company-a fellowship of Christians in my home port of Cheyboygan, Michigan had opened a Christian coffeehouse named “The Lighthouse”.
One of the joys in Heaven will be our meeting again brothers and sisters whom we knew during our journey here. I became a partner in the coffeehouse, moved off ship, in with three or four of the other workers. Jeff, who owned the house, had this album, which we enjoyed, along with the other Maranatha albums, Scott Wesley Brown, 2nd Chapter of Acts, and others lost to memory. We once hosted a concert by a band called “Servant”-this was 1980-and I recently was able to download their album from iTunes, which is very cool.
Back to the album above. I loved it back then, recently found/bought it online, and it’s still sounds great.
Mustard Seed Faith, led by Oden Fong, sang “Happy In Jesus”. Tom Stipe sings my favorite song on the album, “Big City Blues”, an updating of the parable of the Good Samaritan.
Amongst us “slightly, oh so slightly graying” oldtimers there must be more favorites from the “Jesus Music” generation. Honeytree, anyone?

Once More With Feeling! Rove! Rove! Rove Yer Vote!

This post may seem familiar to both of the people who read my blog way back when.

I only hope that Rush Limbaugh can be coaxed out of the private sector to serve as his Vice President. He could keep Condi Rice as Secretary of State, return Rumsfeld to the D.O.D.;
as the token gesture of bipartisan 'friendly' relations, the junior Senator from New York could be offered a prestigious position in President Rove's administration-I think she would make a great White House tour guide, as she used to live there. Of course, she would have to give up her seat to do so, but I'm all for this "ERA Equal" stuff, and I would be fine with her letting a man sit down.
So,remember: in a little over 18 months, when you step into that electoral polling booth, let Karl Rove! Rove! Rove! Your Vote!

The Secret A____ (Shhhh!)

The Secret A----

Shhh! Big Secret! Don’t tell anyone that you heard it from me. There would be …‘Consequences’ if anyone found out. Shhh!

Okay (whisper) here it is: You’re not in heaven yet. Shhh!
Maybe bit of explanation would be good. Do you remember that Great Commission?
Jesus said: “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20
Here’s the deal. We Christians, who have all been called by God to participate in this Great Commission, have had varying results through the centuries-some good, some not so good. But did you notice the last part of that verse?
“I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” This is very important. This promise from Jesus has been the Hope of those who have lost all other hope. Jesus is with, has been with every single child of God throughout the ages. Not one of us has ever faced this sinful, corrupted world without His being with us every step from birth to death and then life. Not only is He always with us, but no matter how we may fail, it’s not about us, but about Him. We live for Him, and often we fail miserably. But not only does He continue to lead us, draw us closer to Himself, but
“22It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. 23They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. 24The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him. 25The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him. 26It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD.” Lamentations 3:22-26
His compassions never fail. While we may frustrate man and mess up so that man will have nothing to do with us, God is greater than man, and is capable of Mercy which we cannot even begin to understand.
God has never been frustrated in any single moment of His Creation. He is fully in charge of every millisecond of our existence. As it says further along in Lamentations chapter 3:
“37Who is he that saith, and it cometh to pass, when the Lord commandeth it not? 38Out of the mouth of the most High proceedeth not evil and good?”
God is in charge. We have been commissioned to go out into the world, make disciples of all nations, teaching them to “observe all that I commanded you”.
Now comes the Shhh! part. We are called out of the world, and then sent back into the world. Let me state that again. We are no longer a part of the world, have been separated from it, and now belong to God and His Kingdom, which the world does not recognize as even existing. While it would have been wonderful to have been physically transformed and transferred to the Kingdom at the moment of our being born again (and dead to sin)
instead we are sent back into the world, to proclaim the Gospel and carry out the Great Commission.
While it is not my place to judge the works of my brothers and sisters (Hi Rand!) I see some who have used the Grace of God in their lives to insulate themselves from the world.
Meaning that a person can be ‘all churched up’, spend every morning in prayer and bible study, have only church friends (and most of those in their own congregation), listen only to Christian radio, watch only the Christian television networks…and be an utter failure for the Kingdom.
Such Christians are the secret Amish, keeping themselves and their families as far away as possible from this sinful world. That’s not called a ‘fruitless’ desire for nothing. To be untouched by the world means that you are invisible to those who need to hear the Gospel.
I hope you don’t mind, but I’m going to get personal for a bit. I live and work and sometimes play with unbelievers. I listen to music, watch television, see movies, and can converse adequately on most secular world issues. I am in the world, but not of it. I no more have a part in this world than a devil would have a part in Heaven. But God has put me where I am for His purposes, just the same as every other Christian. God leads, and we follow, however, wherever He deigns to lead us. I’m trying to Glorify God in my life among unbelievers, and yes, I sometimes fail. Just like every other Christian in the world. But if you look through the pages of the Bible, over and over again you will see examples of how we are to lift up, edify, encourage, and strengthen our brothers and sisters in Christ. No man is an island, and no Christian or group of Christians is supposed to go it alone; Christ is with us always, but we are supposed to be there for each other, also. We all remember
1 Cor 1:21-23
“21And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee: nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you. 22Nay, much more those members of the body, which seem to be more feeble, are necessary: 23And those members of the body, which we think to be less honourable, upon these we bestow more abundant honour; and our uncomely parts have more abundant comeliness.”
Consider me an uncomely part, a less honourable member, but don’t pretend that I am not your brother in Christ. If you think I’m weak, strengthen me. It will only benefit you to do so. We cannot be Secret Amish, insulated from the world, because that is not what God has called us to do. Light and Salt.
Oh, and the ‘consequences’ mentioned at the beginning? If you live like you aren’t in Heaven yet, you might just break out of that stained glass salt shaker and make acquaintances, friends, with people you don’t see in church. Shhh!

May God Bless You Today

I was listening to Cat Stevens tonight at work-”Teaser and the Firecat”- and a lyric on “Peace Train” caught my attention:
“Now I’ve been crying lately, thinking about the world as it is
Why must we go on hating, why cant we live in bliss.”
Why indeed. The world as it is has had me crying sometimes also, though for a different reason than Cat Stevens. He was crying because it wasn’t as peaceful as it could be-I have cried because our sinful world will never know a moment of Peace until Jesus returns, no matter how many wars are fought, won or lost. Conflict and war, at every level, come from the same place: the sinful heart of man. The only way to be at Peace, the Peace which Cat Stevens yearned for, is to lose that sinful heart, and man is incapable of doing that. True Peace only comes through Jesus Christ.
Some of you may be thinking, “Doug should take his own preaching to heart-I’ve read hateful things he has said about others, especially Muslims. He’s a hypocrite.”
I don’t think so. I am very aware of my faults and weaknesses, and I know that I am far from perfect, and I’ve probably given some people ‘ammunition’ for rejecting Christ. God will judge me, but you go ahead and judge me too, if you like.
The only true Peace is to be at Peace with God. Every other ‘peace’ is false, is part of Satan’s conflict with God, no matter what emblems are held or beliefs are professed . Islam, Atheism, Buddhist, Hindu, and all permutations of like belief systems, including the many false “Christian” religions, all are part and parcel of rejecting the true Prince of Peace. It’s not hateful to point this out. It would be hateful and wrong to remain quiet.
Think about this: I am a Christian-I haven’t had a moment of doubt in nearly 30 years about my going to Heaven. I could remain quiet, never tell a single soul about Jesus, and I will be there just the same. Because it’s not dependent on what I do, but what Jesus did for me on Calvary.

Walk with me for a moment.

If I were standing in front of a building and I knew that there was a poison gas leak inside, that to enter that building meant certain death, I would be obligated to try to stop anyone from going inside.
I am obligated to speak out-as I know that Islam, every false religion is a death sentence for its followers-I cannot remain silent.
“God so loved the world” includes every human life that has ever been lived; Jesus died so that every Jew, Muslim, Hindi, agnostic, whatever would have the opportunity to be at peace with God. Even though it must be heartbreaking, Jesus Himself acknowledged:
13“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. 14“For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” Matthew 7:13-14.
I found it, and I want everyone else to find it also. There is no Peace Train where everyone will get along together if they board it. At Cat sang in his song, “Oh I’ve been smiling lately, dreaming about the world as one
And I believe it could be, some day its going to come”. Not through human efforts, friends. And not with sinful hearts generating hate and conflict. Hope to see you in Heaven. May God continue to Bless you and keep you.

Where Would You Go?

Sometimes the hum-drum-drum of daily life becomes a bit much; we become bored with our own heartbeat, if that heart remains in the same place for too long. Man didn’t discover new vistas simply because ‘they were there‘-he had become overly familiar with old vistas.
There is a place I would love to visit, but with my meager resources and non-meager responsibilities I can only be an Internet Explorer (please forgive): Trakai.
Trakai is a beautiful Lithuanian National Park; it’s most cherished attraction is an ancient castle built on an island, surrounded by many lakes.
I learned of Trakai from a Lithuanian friend, Giedre, whose family would vacation there.
Lithuania is beautiful, but flat-until Giedre and our other friends came to work here, they had never seen a waterfall. I showed them as many waterfalls as we could find in the summer of 2001-our country was their ‘new vista’.
Find your Trakai. While we may not be able to travel corporately, we have the ability to explore the world and discover new vistas electronically. It’s a beautiful world.

If You Can't Beat Them...Good News!

Top reasons to join Islam:

For Men:
Once you have become a Muslim, your odds of being killed by a Muslim decrease slightly. Only infidels will deserve horrible deaths, unless you’re one of those depraved Shia heretics, in which case
You Must Die! Die! Die!!! (Stabbing sounds)

You will enjoy the benefits of a strong economy; work will be plentiful with no women allowed to hold jobs, become educated, vote, etc.

Can’t stand the music of Elton John? Good news! He’s gay, so he will be beheaded! No more ‘Candle in the Wind’ interrupting your workday radio, which leads to:

Can’t find enough time to pray? Good News! Ordained prayer times throughout the day, week, month, year! These will replace the cigarette breaks you used to take when you were not yet perfected (Islamist).

Have trouble making up your mind? Good News! You local Imam can dictate your life to you, what you will do, who you can marry, all with the imprimatur of the Koran at his disposal to render decisions.

Do you believe that democratic, representational government for the people by the people is a breeding ground for Satan’s lies? Good News! Not only will your Grand Imam decide who runs your government, but there’s no need to ever show up at a polling station to vote! 3 day weekend, Buds! Unless you are one of those depraved Sunni heretics, in which case
You Must Die! Die! Die!!! (Stabbing sounds)



For Women:
Fewer decisions to make about what to wear. And those few decisions will be made for you by a man-husband, brother, uncle or father.

Getting your Mrs. Degree (the only one you will ever achieve) will bring about a happy, submissive life of absolute servitude to your husband. And no backtalk. Ever.

If I can think of any other reasons for women to join Islam, I'll add to this post before publishing.%2

Our President's Perspective

Good evening. Twelve weeks ago, I asked the Congress to pass an emergency war spending bill that would provide our brave men and women in uniform with the funds and flexibility they need. Instead, members of the House and the Senate passed a bill that substitutes the opinions of politicians for the judgment of our military commanders. So a few minutes ago, I vetoed this bill.
Tonight I will explain the reasons for this veto -- and my desire to work with Congress to resolve this matter as quickly as possible. We can begin tomorrow with a bipartisan meeting with the congressional leaders here at the White House.
Here is why the bill Congress passed is unacceptable. First, the bill would mandate a rigid and artificial deadline for American troops to begin withdrawing from Iraq. That withdrawal could start as early as July 1st. And it would have to start no later than October 1st, regardless of the situation on the ground. It makes no sense to tell the enemy when you plan to start withdrawing. All the terrorists would have to do is mark their calendars and gather their strength -- and begin plotting how to overthrow the government and take control of the country of Iraq. I believe setting a deadline for withdrawal would demoralize the Iraqi people, would encourage killers across the broader Middle East, and send a signal that America will not keep its commitments. Setting a deadline for withdrawal is setting a date for failure -- and that would be irresponsible. Second, the bill would impose impossible conditions on our commanders in combat. After forcing most of our troops to withdraw, the bill would dictate the terms on which the remaining commanders and troops could engage the enemy. That means American commanders in the middle of a combat zone would have to take fighting directions from politicians 6,000 miles away in Washington, D.C. This is a prescription for chaos and confusion, and we must not impose it on our troops. Third, the bill is loaded with billions of dollars in non-emergency spending that has nothing to do with fighting the war on terror. Congress should debate these spending measures on their own merits -- and not as part of an emergency funding bill for our troops.
The Democratic leaders know that many in Congress disagree with their approach, and that there are not enough votes to override a veto. I recognize that many Democrats saw this bill as an opportunity to make a political statement about their opposition to the war. They've sent their message. And now it is time to put politics behind us and support our troops with the funds they need. Our troops are carrying out a new strategy with a new commander -- General David Petraeus. The goal of this new strategy is to help the Iraqis secure their capital, so they can make progress toward reconciliation, and build a free nation that respects the rights of its people, upholds the rule of law, and fights extremists and radicals and killers alongside the United States in this war on terror.
In January, General Petraeus was confirmed by a unanimous vote in the United States Senate. In February, we began sending the first of the reinforcements he requested. Not all of these reinforcements have arrived. And as General Petraeus has said, it will be at least the end of summer before we can assess the impact of this operation. Congress ought to give General Petraeus' plan a chance to work.
In the months since our military has been implementing this plan, we've begun to see some important results. For example, Iraqi and coalition forces have closed down an al Qaeda car bomb network, they've captured a Shia militia leader implicated in the kidnapping and killing of American soldiers, they've broken up a death squad that had terrorized hundreds of residents in a Baghdad neighborhood. Last week, General Petraeus was in Washington to brief me, and he briefed members of Congress on how the operation is unfolding. He noted that one of the most important indicators of progress is the level of sectarian violence in Baghdad. And he reported that since January, the number of sectarian murders has dropped substantially.
Even as sectarian attacks have declined, we continue to see spectacular suicide attacks that have caused great suffering. These attacks are largely the work of al Qaeda -- the enemy that everyone agrees we should be fighting. The objective of these al Qaeda attacks is to subvert our efforts by reigniting the sectarian violence in Baghdad -- and breaking support for the war here at home. In Washington last week, General Petraeus explained it this way: "Iraq is, in fact, the central front of all al Qaeda's global campaign."
Al Qaeda -- al Qaeda's role makes the conflict in Iraq far more complex than a simple fight between Iraqis. It's true that not everyone taking innocent life in Iraq wants to attack America here at home. But many do. Many also belong to the same terrorist network that attacked us on September 11th, 2001 -- and wants to attack us here at home again. We saw the death and destruction al Qaeda inflicted on our people when they were permitted a safe haven in Afghanistan. For the security of the American people, we must not allow al Qaeda to establish a new safe haven in Iraq.
We need to give our troops all the equipment and the training and protection they need to prevail. That means that Congress needs to pass an emergency war spending bill quickly. I've invited leaders of both parties to come to the White House tomorrow -- and to discuss how we can get these vital funds to our troops. I am confident that with good will on both sides, we can agree on a bill that gets our troops the money and flexibility they need as soon as possible.
The need to act is urgent. Without a war funding bill, the military has to take money from some other account or training program so the troops in combat have what they need. Without a war funding bill, the Armed Forces will have to consider cutting back on buying new equipment or repairing existing equipment. Without a war funding bill, we add to the uncertainty felt by our military families. Our troops and their families deserve better -- and their elected leaders can do better.
Here in Washington, we have our differences on the way forward in Iraq, and we will debate them openly. Yet whatever our differences, surely we can agree that our troops are worthy of this funding -- and that we have a responsibility to get it to them without further delay.
Thank you for listening. May God bless our troops.

Are the Iraqi people worth the sacrifices of our brave troops? I believe they are. Is a democratic ally in the Middle East worth the sacrifices of our brave troops? I believe it is. Is it better to fight today against al Qaeda in Iraq than to fight them tomorrow on our shores? Yes, I believe it is. These beliefs are how I differ from Nancy Pelosi and many people in our country I guess. Maybe this has not been the best run war, but that is because it is a new type of war and adjustments need to be made on the run, but I believe it is a necessary and good war.

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le