Breaking News: Obama Speaks the Truth!!!

Regular readers may recall that I used this headline once before - on April Fool's Day. This time, though, it's the real deal, folks. Responding to criticism about the stimulus plan, Obama is quoted as saying the program "has worked as intended."

While the stated goal of "creating or preserving 3 million jobs" because unemployment might go over 9% for the first time since the early 1980's is obviously a bust; and the promised "middle-class tax cut" hasn't even appeared on the horizon; one stated goal appears to be working well: "aid to strapped state governments" - $246 billion, at this count. This, of course, is akin to Robin Hood stealing your money and giving it to another crook.

But I think Obama must have been referring to the unstated intention of the stimulus package: more money and more power stolen from the people and transferred to Washington.

How can you argue with success?

The Reading Room

I personally can think of many good places to settle in to do some reading: an overstuffed chair, a window seat, a lounge chair in the sun. Although I know many people who will disagree - even people in my own family - the bathroom is not on my list. This cat would seem to agree.

Word for Wednesday: Clouds without Water

Welcome to the Word for Wednesday meme. Okay, I know it's Thursday and I've missed it again, but nonetheless I wanted to share. Be sure to check out the other posts for this week: Rebecca's, Jim's, and Lisa's.

Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.

... But these men revile the things which they do not understand; and the things which they know by instinct, like unreasoning animals, by these things they are destroyed. Woe to them! For they have gone the way of Cain, and for pay they have rushed headlong into the error of Balaam, and perished in the rebellion of Korah. These men are those who are hidden reefs in your love feasts when they feast with you without fear, caring for themselves; clouds without water, carried along by winds; autumn trees without fruit, doubly dead, uprooted; wild waves of the sea, casting up their own shame like foam; wandering stars, for whom the black darkness has been reserved forever. (Jude 3-4; 10-13)

As American Christians, we're quite fond of pointing out the evil and immorality of our world, smugly gathering on Sunday morning with others who do the same. But in these last days, we would do well to look a little closer to home.

Speaking of the 'clouds without water' that have crept into the church as Jude referenced above, James Jacob Prasch had this to say:

We read in Hebrews 12:1 that we are surrounded by a cloud of witnesses. In scripture water speaks of the Holy Spirit. These people are clouds. In some sense they are witnesses, but the Holy Spirit is not in their witness. The Holy Spirit's presence and power is not in their testimony; living water does not flow from them. They may be witnesses, in the sense that they believe that Jesus died. They may even have experienced His salvation at some point, or at least professed faith in Him, but they are clouds without water. They are carried along by different winds. (Grain for the Famine, p. 18)

In scripture, the Holy Spirit is called among other things, our Teacher, the Spirit of Truth, and the Comforter. Who among us, whether in the church or out, is arrogant enough to think we can do anything without His indwelling presence?

Prisoners amusing themselves

I've stumbled across a gem of a website called Grace Gems! The following letter written by John Newton comes from that site.

Concerning 'Handel's Messiah' John Newton wrote:

How shall we view the people of our times? I see the great mass of people involved in one common charge of high treason against the omnipotent God! They are already in a state of imprisonment, but have not yet been brought to their trial. The evidence against them is so plain, strong and pointed, that there is not the least doubt of their guilt being fully proved—and that nothing but a free pardon from God can preserve them from their deserved eternal punishment!

In this situation, it would seem in their best interest—to avail themselves of every expedient in their power for obtaining God's mercy. But they are entirely heedless of their imminent danger, and are wholly taken up with contriving methods of amusing themselves, that they may pass away the term of their imprisonment with as much cheerfulness as possible!

Among other resources, they call in the assistance of music—and they are particularly pleased with 'Handel's Messiah'. They choose to make . . .
the solemnities of their impending judgment,
the character of their Judge,
the methods of His procedure, and
the dreadful punishment to which they are exposed
—the themes of their musical entertainment!

And, as if they were quite unconcerned in the outcome—their attention is chiefly fixed upon the skill of the composer, in adapting the style of his music—to the very solemn subjects with which they are trifling!

The offended King, however, unasked by them, and out of His great mercy and compassion towards those who have no pity for themselves, sends them a gracious message. He assures them that He is unwilling that they should eternally perish; and that He requires, yes, He entreats them to submit to Him! He points out a way in which He offers them a free and a full pardon!

But, instead of taking a single step towards a compliance with His undeserved and gracious offer—they set His message to music! And this, together with a description of their present hopeless state, and of the fearful doom awaiting them if they continue obstinate, is sung for their entertainment, and accompanied with every kind of music!

Surely, if such a case as I have supposed, could be found in real life, though I might admire the musical taste of these people—I would certainly commiserate their stupidity and hardness of heart!

Pravda says US has gone Marxist

For a look at what the Russians can see that we apparently can't, go here.

Word for Wednesday: What our Children Learn

Welcome to the Word for Wednesday meme. Each week, you're invited to counter the words of our secular world with the words of the Bible. Be sure to leave a link to your post here in the comments!

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Monday I attended my granddaughter's "moving up" ceremony as she finishes fourth grade and moves into the middle school. It was the first time I had been in the local school system since my own kids finished.

The ceremony included four songs by the kids, which they did very well, and short speeches by the elementary school principal, the middle school principal, and the superintendent, before the kids received their certificates.

As I watched them cross the stage individually, shake hands, and position themselves on the other side of the stage, it occurred to me that they had learned a lot more than how to sing two-part harmony. Here are just a few of those things.

Fit in. From the time they first walk through the school door, children learn that they are not individuals, but one of many. They are separated from their families where they have their own identity and values, and become part of a group that must all adhere to a common set of standards. Are not five sparrows sold for two cents? Yet not one of them is forgotten before God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear; you are more valuable than many sparrows. (Luke 12:6-7)

Obey all adults. Any adult may tell a child what to do, and they are expected to obey, not question. This potentially prepares them for abuse, as this school and others in the area, have demonstrated. But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil. (Hebrews 5:14)

Responsibility for children changes hands at age five. The elementary principal shared an anecdote from a father when he dropped off his youngest of four children on her first day of kindergarten. As he headed for the door, he expressed a feeling that I've heard from many parents: "Free at last, I'm free at last." Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. (Ephesians 6:4)

Flattery works. The middle school principal also shared an anecdote. As she spent some time with this group over the past couple weeks, one of the students told her she didn't look old enough to be a principal. The principal assured us with a smile that this child would have a good future in "her" school. He who rebukes a man will afterward find more favor Than he who flatters with the tongue. (Proverbs 28:23)

Be a jack of all trades and a master of none. Many years ago, I discussed this concept with a teacher who was dissatisfied with our school system. He shared this story, which exists in many different forms on the internet.

Animal School

Once upon a time the animals had a school. The state created a curriculum that would meet all their needs, choosing four subjects: running, climbing, flying, and swimming. All the animals studied all the subjects.

THE DUCK The duck was very good at swimming, better than the teacher, in fact. He received passing grades in running and flying, but was hopeless in climbing, so they made him drop swimming so that he could practice climbing. As this damaged the webs on his feet, after a while he was only average at swimming, but average is still acceptable, and nobody worried much about it except the duck.

THE EAGLE The eagle was considered a troublemaker. In his climbing class he beat everybody to the top of the tree, but he had his own way of getting there that was against the rules. He always had to stay after school and write, "Cheating is wrong," five hundred times.This kept him from soaring, which he loved, but schoolwork comes first.

THE BEAR The big, lumbering bear failed all his classes. They said he was lazy, especially in the winter. His best time was summer, but school wasn't open then.

THE ZEBRA The zebra played truant most of the time because the ponies made fun of his stripes, and this made him very unhappy.

THE KANGAROO The kangaroo started out at the top of the racing class, but became discouraged when was told to move swiftly on all four legs the way his classmates did.

THE FISH The fish quit school because he was bored. To him, all four subjects were the same, but nobody understood that because they had never seen a fish.

THE SQUIRREL The squirrel got an A in climbing, but his flying teacher made him start from the ground up, instead of from the treetop down. His legs got so sore practicing takeoffs that he began getting Cs in climbing and Ds in running.

THE BEE The bee was the biggest problem of all, so the teacher sent him to Doctor Owl for testing. Doctor Owl said that the bee's wings were too small for flying and they were in the wrong place.The bee never saw Doctor Owl's report, so he just went ahead and flew anyway.

Which brings us to my main verse for today:

Train up a child in the way he should go,
Even when he is old he will not depart from it.
Proverbs 22:6

One commentary, which I can't find at the moment, says that the Hebrew phrase "should go" more properly translates as "leans." Instead of teaching our children how to fit in, flatter, and follow the crowd, we should help them develop their God-given talents. This can only be done successfully by the parents to whom they were given, not a public school system. For the views of a New York State Teacher of the Year on this subject, go here.

MSM pushes Obama's Health Care, just like they pushed Bush's war on WMD's

If NBC's critically-important, hard-hitting news stories about Obama's dog and their video of him killing a fly hasn't convinced you that mainstream media (MSM) is nothing more than a regurgitating voice for the feds, then ABC's upcoming program to sell Obama's health care plan - to be broadcast from the White House - should. (so cozy)

Does anybody remember MSM's investigative reporting on WMD's in Iraq, the supposed justification for invading a sovereign nation and killing thousands of people? Of course you don't, because there was none. MSM obediently parroted what Bush & Company told them. They didn't present any opposing views, and they didn't investigate squat.

National news is now defined as anything the President says to a reporter.

I realize I can't counter ABC's influence, and even though they won't present any opposing views to Obama's health care plan, those views do exist. So if you're going to hunker down and watch their propaganda, take 8 minutes right now to watch Ron Paul offer some alternate solutions. It just might prevent another war over imaginary WMD's.

Senate Lures Foreigners with S1023

Understandably, not as many foreigners have been coming to visit the USA since 9/11. Obviously, this is something the government must address, so meet S1023 the Travel Promotion Act of 2009. This bill would, among other things, "establish a non-profit corporation to better communicate U.S. entry policies to international travelers and promote leisure, business, and scholarly travel to the United States. The legislation would also create an Office of Travel Promotion within the Department of Commerce to coordinate with the corporation. "

And how will all these new government jobs be funded? The government (meaning our tax dollars) will cover two thirds, and there will be "agreed assessments" on the travel industry.

But the honey that will draw all these foreigners to our shores? The Department of Homeland Security will be required to collect a "$10 ESTA fee from foreign travelers.” Who could resist such a deal?

And these are the same people that are taking over our banks and car companies. Be afraid, America. Be very afraid.

Word for Wednesday: Hate Speech

Welcome to the Word for Wednesday meme. Each week, you're invited to counter the words of our secular world with the words of the Bible. Be sure to leave a link to your post here in the comments!

* * *

This post has two videos that give us a peek at the world that is coming. In the first, a policeman in England tells a street preacher that it's a crime to say homosexuality is a sin. The second, ironically also from England, promotes an atheist ad campaign on city buses.

Make no mistake. Laws aimed at outlawing "hate speech" such as HR 1913 are really laws aimed at outlawing Christianity.

Soon all Christians will have the opportunity to be blessed by suffering for the cross. The only question remaining is if we'll suffer the consequences of our faith - or deny our Christ.

Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. (Matthew 5:11-12)

For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error. And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper, being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful; and although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them. (Romans 1:26-32)

But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these. (2 Timothy 3:1-5)