Tuesday, May 31, 2005

YOU MUST READ THIS!


If there was a way that I could have included flashing lights, siren, fireworks and semaphore flags to call your attention to this post, I would have done it.

I tell you, if you are a true, red-blooded American that loves your country and believes in its God-ordained place in world history, you gotta stay with me on this.

Now, I may be the last one in on this being a newbie in blogdom. But if you are like me, then you should be as sorry as I am for giving Bill Whittle's Eject! Eject! Eject! blog an anemic review in my post yesterday. To wit:
Bill Whittle's May 18, 2005 post over at Eject! Eject! Eject! is very comprehensive and full of insights.

Now that's like saying ho-hum to the greatest rendering ever of what has been pent up in the American psyche all these years all because elitists that control intelligent expression in the media, academia, and government have all but muddled the ideals upon which America was built and nearly succeeded in bamboozling the populace into thinking that being American is no good.

You don't believe me? Well, get a sampling of what you might find in Bill's blog if you visit and read for yourself:
We live in an age of miracles, and we just don’t see it. All of the magicians who stand on generations of other magicians – engineers, technicians, architects – go unnamed and unsung, while common actors, tradesmen whose art form has barely advanced since the days of Babylon and Egypt, are deified and rewarded as no living gods in history.

We, in our Sanctuary, who sleep in warm, dry, safe places without a second thought of the men and women who shiver in the cold to keep us free and secure, are getting very far away from the forces that have threatened us for millennia and threaten us still, as potent as the black rage of an incensed mob of religious lunatics killing people in response to some real or imagined slight.

And yet our elites – bored, pampered and without a glimmer of perspective – search the inside of our walls by night, looking for cracks to enlarge.

If you're sick and tired of the intellectual indigestion you suffer because you know the truth about the goodness of America and yet could not find affirmation because the Left and their activist judge and remnant-of-the-60's professor allies have ambushed cultural expression and formed roadblocks to frustrate those that know the truth about the farce that they peddle for "reality," fret no more.

Arise, friend, and rediscover your moral GPS here and here.

Some have commented that the length of the posts cost them an hour of sleep. I promise you it will be well worth every minute of it.

You will get a kick too out of following the comments that come after the posts. I guarantee it.

God bless you.

Monday, May 30, 2005

Salute To Our Military


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We do remember this Memorial Day the men and women in uniform who put themselves in harm's way in order that the Land Of The Free may remain free indeed. We recognize the high prize that they pay so that we may continue to live our lives in as normal a way as possible.

In their honor, we feature today blogs run by soldiers in active duty, giving us a close in and first hand view of their experience out in the field of conflict.

Blackfive wrote today about his experience guesting on MSNBC's Connected with Ron Reagan and Monica Crowley. In the process, several other military blogs are mentioned in the post. Check them out.

Chief Wiggles have moved on to a new website by the same name. The old site, though, is still a treasure chest of posts worthy of visiting especially today. His March 6, 2004 post speaks of his thoughts upon returning home from Iraq and his very soon return there. He tells about how his attitudes have been impacted by his experience. Here is a very interesting quote on his thoughts about the media:
Upon returning to my real life here in the states, for some reason I now find TV very boring and superficial. I am bored with the things we consider to be entertainment and find most programming to be meaningless and without any real redeeming value...I don't know what happened, but I am now appalled at the things discussed on TV in the name of "news." I find many programs disgusting and meaningless.

He also has an insightful take on why the Iraqui's tend to blame the USA at the slightest hint of hardship. You will find Chief Wiggles' new site here.

Citizen Smash's Memorial Day post has great photos, a good word for Boy Scouts that helped him place an American flag on every grave site in the Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery, and stories about soldiers laid to rest in some of the sites.

The Command Post opened up comments for readers' Memorial Day remembrances. These may reflect on the meaning of the day, or may offer a memorial to a particular person or people who have paid the ultimate sacrifice in service to our country, regardless of war or theater. Those that wanted to share their thoughts on the day, remember a particular person, or just say thank you to those who have served, were encouraged to write their comments on this op ed post.

Bill Whittle's May 18, 2005 post over at Eject! Eject! Eject! is very comprehensive and full of insights

Mike the Marine's From the Halls to the Shores tells of a Memorial Day decision to visit his Grandpa who is a fellow vet from WWII. While he would rather have stayed with his wife while he is on a short time off, Grandpa might not be around too long so he is taking the plane ride to him.

Howdy's blog talks about a Gold Star Mother.

Hurl's blog is back online after a couple of weeks being away. He is very appreciative of the prayers and support of all that have been emailing and commenting.

Major K remembers fallen comrades and mentions how nicely Cal Thomas puts it in their behalf.

The Mudville Gazzette gives a few suggestions on how we that are fortunate enough to live in the nation that remains the last best hope for freedom may do things this weekend that bring us joy. Almost as an afterthought only, he also mentions that if we have a moment, a toast to those who've made it possible would be fine. Indeed, we honor their sacrifice by living well.

Rantburg has a list of headlines on what is happening in various fields of conflict.

I recommend heading straight for Sgt. Hook's sidebar and locating the section titled HOOAH!. Click on My Heroes and be treated to a moving photo essay of the folks that give meaning to today's celebration.

Army reservist Steven Kiel laments the misguided e-mail of one Bob Fertik, President Democrats.com (not from the official Democratic Party website) still parroting the lame Michael Moore line that "Bush did not tell the truth about Iraq."

There. Many more sites are worth mentioning and paying a visit. The ones we have here should help lead you to them.

We hope that our salute to these heroes serve in some measure to counteract mainstream media's refusal to acknowledge the honor that is truly due them.

Friday, May 27, 2005

A Liberal Sees The Light


In today's feature on the Prison Fellowship website's Christian worldview page, Breakpoint, Chuck Colson comments on a new book by Gil Reavill titled, Smut: A Sex-Industry Insider (and Concerned Father) Says Enough is Enough.

Gil Reavill, describes himself as a “provocateur,” a “staunch believer in the First Amendment” and a “member of the American Civil Liberties Union”—someone who opposes “any element of government control of human expression.” Yet, reading from his book, one might mistake him for Jim Dobson or Colson himself.

Here is how the commentary opens:
According to a new book, we have failed our children because we haven’t fulfilled “our function as guardians of their cultural environment.” The “American media’s obsession with sex,” says the author, “has gotten so out of hand” that “even the provocateurs are being provoked.”

Curious how this liberal turned around? Here's the rest of the commentary.

Colson correctly points out that Reavill's continued opposition to, as he puts it, “government control of human expression” makes a solution difficult. Reavill wants a return to “segregating sexual expression from the public commons” while forgetting that what made such "segregation" possible was a strong moral code which sadly has all but disappeared in today's society. Other than a strong sense of right and wrong in the populace, what is there left but criminal prosecution and civil sanctions to keep pornographers from shoving their trash in the faces of our children?

Go here for more information.

Thursday, May 26, 2005

Save The "Princess"


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The MOMS Club of Duvall in Washington is on a mission to save a life. They found out that the child of one of their own members, herself a resident of Duvall, has little chance of survival, unless she gets the help she needs.

The statement from the club website's page titled Moms on a Mission to Save Our "Princess", goes like this:

Her 5-year old daughter loves to dance, play, sing and laugh and is, in most ways, like most of our children except for one thing, she has a life-threatening, genetic disorder called Fanconi Anemia. The effects of the disease are devastating, leaving patients weak and prone to severe bleeding due to insufficient blood clotting and susceptible to infection. Patients are also at an increased risk for developing Leukemia and other cancers. Many children do not survive to adulthood. Our little girl needs a bone marrow transplant to save her life. The National Bone Marrow Registry has come up with a disappointingly low number of potential matches. That is where we, the community, come in. Maybe, just maybe, we can all be heroes and help keep our little “princess” dancing for years to come.


Posted by Hello

Won't you join with these great Moms to save this life? You could potentially save many more by either donating blood or having your blood typed and joining the National Bone Marrow Registry. A blood typing fee of $25.00 is a small price to pay for the life you could save. Make this your opportunity to be a hero and save a life.

Check out the MOMS Club of Duvall Blood & Marrow Registry Drive (With help from the Puget Sound Blood Center), Saturday, June 11th at the Duvall Fire House, 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Onsite childcare will be available to all volunteer donors. Look here for contact information and further details.

God bless you.

Back Online, The LORD Be Praised!


 Posted by Hello

My computer is up and running. Hallelujah! Praise the LORD!

My most heartfelt thanks to you who have kept visiting inspite of the lack of updates. May God bless you really, really good.

My friend, the troubleshooter, said that my hard drive was fried. Somehow it got corrupted, perhaps by a virus (If it was so, I don't know how it got through with all the defenses I have set up).

He installed a completely new hard drive. So, I'm like starting from scratch. I just now got my files and drivers reconstructed to where I am able to blog again. I have still quite a ways to go but at least I'm functional again.

I'm just so happy to be able to post again. Thank you once more for dropping in.

Pray for The LORD My Dad, if you will. I sense that the Father wants more usefulness out of it for his purposes and for the glory of his name.

Come, visit again soon.

Friday, May 20, 2005

Computer Down

'Puter sputter. That was all I got from my usually trusty electronic companion when I got home from the day job yesterday. Had to borrow a friend's comp to post this one today.

Please accept my deepest regrets. My other friend, the troubleshooter, won't be able to fix my foundering machine until tomorrow morning. No telling what it will take to get it up and going again. All we can promise is we shall resume posting as soon as I get a healthy machine. Yes, I will bug my troubleshooter friend no end to get it done pronto.

Thank you for visiting, nevertheless. If you've been here before, you might want to browse around the archives. We have posts clear to January.

The sidebar also has plenty of features you might enjoy.

May God richly bless you.

Wednesday, May 18, 2005

My Hilarious Dad--This Week: Cowboys, Grandparents and Cops

(It is our practice in The LORD My Dad on Wednesdays to lighten up and post humor or inspiration. We do so to call attention also to the humorous facet of the LORD's character.--SDO)

DON'T SQUAT WITH YER SPURS ON: A COWBOY'S GUIDE TO LIFE
by Texas Bix Bender

~ Never kick a fresh cow chip on a hot day.

~ There's two theories to arguin' with a woman. Neither one works.

~ Don't worry about bitin' off more than you can chew. Your mouth is probably a whole lot bigger'n you think.

~ If you get to thinkin' you're a person of some influence, try orderin' somebody else's dog around.

~ Never ask a man the size of his spread.

~ After eating an entire bull, a mountain lion felt so good he started roaring. He kept it up until a hunter came along and shot him. The moral: When you're full of bull, keep your mouth shut.

~ If you find yourself in a hole the first thing to do is stop diggin'.

~ Never smack a man who's chewin' tobacco.

~ It don't take a genius to spot a goat in a flock of sheep.

~ Never ask a barber if he thinks you need a haircut.

~ Good judgment comes from experience, and a lot of that comes from bad judgment.

~ Always drink upstream from the herd.

~ Never drop your gun to hug a grizzly.

~ If you're ridin' ahead of the herd, take a look back every now and then to make sure it's still there.

~ When you give a lesson in meanness to a critter or a person, don't be surprised if they learn their lesson.

~ When you're throwin' your weight around, be ready to have it thrown around by somebody else.

~ Lettin' the cat outta the bag is a whole lot easier 'n puttin' it back.

~ Always take a good look at what you're about to eat. It's not so important to know what it is, but it's critical to know what it was.

~ The quickest way to double your money is to fold it over and put it back in your pocket.

~ Never miss a good chance to shut up.

---------------------------------------------

Some Future Quotes from Grandparents

* "I remember when we only had 500 channels to watch!"

* "You call that 'dancing'? Shoot! Tell your grandma to bring that 'Macarena' CD over here and I'll show you some REAL dancing."

* "When I was your age, we didn't have surgically implanted telepathy microchips! When we wanted to talk to our friends, we had to use a CELL PHONE!"

* "When I was your age, we didn't admire the grace and beauty of a tuna swimming in some aquarium tank! No, sirree. We ate them right out of the can!"

* "Senility, my foot! I'm telling you President Hasselhoff used to have a talking car!"

---------------------------------------------

Murphy's Laws For Law Enforcement

1. 'Bullet Proof' vests aren't.

2. The bigger they are, the harder they fall. They also punch, kick and choke harder too.

3. The speed at which you respond to a fight call is inversely proportional to how long you've been a cop.

4. Tear gas works on cops too, and regardless of wind direction, will always blow back in your face.

5. High speed chases will always proceed from an area of light traffic to an area of extremely heavy traffic.

6. If you know someone who tortures animals and wets the bed, he is either a serial killer or he works for Internal Affairs.

7. Placing a gun back in a shoulder holster with your finger on the trigger will cause you to walk with a limp.

8. Flash hiders don't really.

9. If you have `cleared' all the rooms and met no resistance, you and your entry team have probably kicked in the door of the wrong house.

10. If a cop swings a baton in a fight, he will hit other cops more often than he will hit the bad guys he swings at.

11. Domestic arguments will always migrate from an area of few available weapons (living room), to an area with many available weapons (kitchen).

12. If you have just punched out a handcuffed prisoner for spitting at you, you are about to become a star on `Eyewitness News'.

13. Bullets work on veteran cops too. They also work on weight lifters, martial arts experts, department marksmen, Vice cops, S.W.A.T. jocks, and others who consider themselves immortal.

14. When a civilian sees a blue light approaching at a high rate of speed, he will always pull into the lane the cop needs to use.

15. If you drive your patrol car to the geometric center of the Gobi Desert, within five minutes some dumb civilian will pull along side you and ask for directions.

16. You can never drive slow enough to please the citizens who don't need a cop, and you can never drive fast enough to please the ones who do.

17. Any suspect with a rifle is a better shot than any cop with a pistol.

18. From behind you, the bad guys can see your night sights as well as you can.

19. On any call, there will always be more `bad guys' than there are good guys, and the farther away your back-up, the more there will be.

20. The longer you've been a cop, the shorter your flashlight and your temper gets.

21. Whatever you are about to do, if there is a good chance it will get you killed, you probably shouldn't do it.

22. You should never do a shotgun search of a dark warehouse with a cop whose nickname is "Boomer".

23. The better you do your job, the more likely you are to be shot, injured, complained on, sued, investigated, or subpoenaed on your day off.

24. If a large group of drunk bikers is "holed-up" in a house, the Department will send one officer in a beat car. If there is one biker "holed-up" in a house, they will send the entire S.W.A.T. Team.

APF: Aiken's One Liners

Source:
Andychaps "The Funnies"
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/andychaps_the-funnies/

Yay, Pastor J.A.!

Pastor J.A. Gillmartin over at The SHEEP's Crib has an excellent roundup of blogs he has recently visited. Yours truly am humbled that he would include The LORD My Dad in such a distinguished bunch.

His post today titled, MSM & DEMOCRACY - Wake Up America: The Sequel!, deserves a good serious read. He reacts to the May 17, 2005 Reuters report that Pakistan dismissed Tuesday as inadequate an apology and retraction by the Newsweek magazine of a report that U.S. interrogators at Guantanamo Bay had desecrated the Koran.

Pastor J.A. points out how a small ignorant minority in every group of any size, when left to themselves, will behave in ways counter to the stated objectives of the group. He shows how this gives rise to extremism, notably among Muslims.

Tuesday, May 17, 2005

Great New Blog


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It's been awhile. But we're sure glad to see another great blog featured in NickQueen.com's Out of the Wilderness new Christian blogs Showcase 10.

Dignan's 75 Year Plan blog carries posts that prime one's thought pump and get it going. Give it a visit, if you will, and give Dignan your kudos.

Journalism 101: So What Makes For Good News Reporting?


 Posted by Hello

Newsweek has officially issued their retraction of their dubiously founded story over the alleged toilet flushing of a Quran in the Guantanamo prison camp to rattle certain Muslim prisoners. We credit Newsweek for the decision although we will not hold our breath hoping the episode has made them wiser.

This should all but bury this horse. We grieve over the terrible loss of lives and the dreadful damage it had caused. If it is to matter somehow, though, we should at least attempt to profit from learning what got the horse in the deadly trouble that it did in the first place?

Mark Tapscott of the Tapscott’s Copy Desk blog offers an excellent analysis from the point of view of a veteran journalist. His core point admonishes Newsweek, in light of still very fresh memories of other mainstream media journalists caught fabricating facts and quotes, that it will take a long and sincere doing before it can expect to be taken seriously again. In the process, Tapscott points out some basics of the trade everyone, amateur or professional, would do well to heed.

Here’s a quote:
ANALYSIS:
For whatever reason, it appears Newsweek's reporters and editors forgot Journalism 101's First Rule: You don't publish a serious allegation that could seriously damage or destroy an individual's reputation, put somebody in physical danger or place public safety at risk if you don't have two independently verifiable sources.

...Newsweek went ahead and published despite its failure to independently verify its lone source's credibility. At a minimum, Journalism 101 would have required holding off publication...

Here’s the rest of the post...

Monday, May 16, 2005

The Newsweek Stab In The Back


 Posted by Hello

Need I restate what has already been so eloquently expressed all over blogdom? Read for yourself here, here, here, there, and everywhere.

I've heard it mouthed by the press so many times when they are hard in pursuit of a story: "Because the public should know." What a noble cause if it were not only something for the mouth to say. What an honorable thing to go after if it were not only a smokescreen to get to a story to outdo the competition. Good if it were only the competition. When "Because the public should know" becomes a cover to sabotage the "ideological enemy" even at the cost of integrity and, worse, lives, one is just left stunned at the thought of how much lower these so-called professionals are capable of sinking.

Have we forsaken nation, compatriots--not to mention concern over the impact of what we do to diplomacy, the economy and the eventual daily life of every citizen--in the name of our politics and our publishing house?

May God have mercy on us all.

To Look After Orphans And Widows


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In Africa, a widow and her children lacking resources for legal help can lose land and property they own. Others that are crafty and intimidating simply grab these from them.

Children of the South Asia tsunami victims are vulnerable. They are preyed upon by child traffickers.

These scenarios are not limited to Africa and South Asia. Bond slavery, the prostituting of children and other injustices to those who cannot rely upon their local law enforcement are worldwide phenomena.

The Bible says:
Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. (James 1:27)

One organization has taken this principle to heart. The International Justice Mission (IJM) helps people suffering injustice and oppression who cannot rely on local authorities for relief. The agency documents and monitors conditions of abuse and oppression, educates the church and public about the abuses, and mobilizes intervention on behalf of the victims. IJM was founded by Gary Haugen who was the Officer in Charge of the U.N. investigation into the Rwanda genocide.

The IJM's methods include:

Documentation: International Justice Mission seeks to establish factual records of reported human rights abuses based on the investigations of legally trained professionals

Intervention: International Justice Mission seeks to intervene on behalf of the victims of injustice and oppression by providing or facilitating the provision of:

1. Emergency relief (helping to bring an end to the abusive conduct or conditions)
2. Perpetrator accountability (helping to bring the perpetrators to justice)
3. Structural prevention (helping to prevent the abusive conduct or conditions)
4. Victim care (helping to bring tangible compensation or aid to the victims)

Education: International Justice Mission seeks to present:

1. The biblical and devotional imperative to seek justice on behalf of the oppressed
2. A concrete need for intervention on behalf of specific victims of abuse and oppression
3. Overseas examples of the tangible, effective relief that can be brought to the victims of injustice through international efforts.

More on the IJM website...

Titled, "Twenty Four Children Rescued From Sex Slavery in the Dominican Republic, Five Perpetrators Jailed," here is a sample of what the media are saying about IJM.

Please pay them a visit. Remember them in your prayer. Ask the LORD to instruct you on how you could become part of religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless.

God bless you.

Sunday, May 15, 2005

On Eagle's Wings


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On one of our trips to the lake, my son and I had the privilege to observe what looked to us as a family of eagles, mom and dad and two eaglets, in flight. Most likely flight school time, we thought, as we marveled at the magnificence of these masters of the winds. They glide so effortlessly while we grumbled under our breaths below as the westerly breeze obliterated our best attempts at landing our fish baits in our favorite holes.

The birds circled about for awhile. Then the largest one headed north and disappeared behind the trees. There goes my family theory, I thought again. Until the big bird reappeared, this time to the right of the trees and in full frontal view of us. With powerful wing beats it rose from the water, now we realized, clutching in one of its vise-like talons a huge trout, its tail still swishing back and forth. What an awesome sight!

It never ceases to amaze me whenever I see in real live presentation the instincts that God has programmed into creatures like the birds. When they have their young, they care for them, guard them with their lives, feed them selflessly and teach them what they need to learn in order to survive on their own.

The mother eagle even pads her nest with feathers from her own breast to make it comfortable for her eaglets. Yet, she will also tweak the twigs on the same nest at the proper time, making it less and less hospitable, to force the growing young out of it. She will take one of the juveniles, fly high and drop it. She lets it fall on a free dive all by itself. Then she quickly flies underneath it, catches it in one powerful wing, and does it all over again until the young one learns to fly on its own.

What a powerful picture of how God also mentors every believer into the shape he has designed each one of us to be. No matter what the new believer's age is when he first receives Christ as his personal Savior and LORD, he is an infant in Christ at that point. He will need to feed on spiritual milk, the Word of God. He will take his first baby steps of faith, learn to speak God's language, go into deeper study of God's Word and bolder petitions in prayer, and "fly," if you will, in worship and in committing to a life of ministry for Christ.

I remember just how warm and fuzzy it was when I was a baby in the faith. All the cares in the world seemed to have melted out of my life. But at each step of faith, I saw more and more that the "harvest was plentiful but the workers are few" (Matthew 9:37). Each time I responded to a harvest need I needed to grow up some more to be equal to the task. Every stage in my growth was not without pain nor trouble.

The Father in heaven, just like the mother eagle, "tweaks the twigs" in our comfort zone, throws us into a free fall where we often times feel we are so alone, and then at the appropriate time, never too soon and never too late, he catches us. Those are the times when we think that a miracle has just happened and all our troubles have somehow worked themselves out, vanished into thin air almost. Then we get thrown into another free fall. Only this time we find that we have better use of our "wings" from having gone through the last involuntary dive.

Until we are flying skillfully, the Father never leaves us on our own. He never really does even when we have fully grown. Christ is perfect. And the Father is working so that we will grow, be shaped and conformed, into Christ's likeness.
The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms. (Deuteronomy 33:27)

Artwork provided courtesy of James "theo" Theopistos. See his artwork at BibleVerseArt.com, which is owned and operated by Omni Visions Digital Media Services.

Jesus Loves The Little Children


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There seems to be an epidemic of violence against kids, especially young girls. Even John Gibson of Foxnews has taken notice. Read what he has to say.

We wanted to do our part so we made some improvements on this website to feature a couple of banners for the National Center For Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). There's one here on the main page sidebar and another in the cartoon page footer. Take a look and see how you can help.

Now that we've mentioned additions to the website, there is now also a new button that leads to our May 9, 2005 post, "How Well Do You Know God?," which carries a link to a neat interactive quiz, courtesy of the Rev. Charles Stanley's In Touch Ministry, that gives you a personalized answer. Check it out at the sidebar right underneath my profile box.

There are more cartoons too in the Today's Cartoon page so click underneath the animated David and Goliath and have at it.

All that work took away my Saturday but we should resume posting right after church today.

Enjoy.

God bless you.

Saturday, May 14, 2005

Excuses, Excuses


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God has a way of calling our attention when he invites us to partner with him in one of his projects. God caused Moses' head to turn by a bush that burned but was not consumed. That by itself should already have made Moses notice. Imagine how much more attentive he got when the bush spoke to him.

Lesson: When God calls your attention, you pay attention.

It was clear by what happened next that God's purpose was to make Moses his main partner in his great project to get his people out of Egypt. What an awesome privilege. You'd think, by the usual stellar billing Moses is accorded in church Bible storytelling, that he would have jumped at the offer.

Moses turned out to be just like myself and, I suspect, most of us. He gave the LORD a flurry of excuses.
But Moses said to God, "Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?" (Exodus 3:11)

"What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say, 'The LORD did not appear to you'?" (Exodus 4:1)

"O Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue." (Exodus 4:10)

Moses was telling God in essence, "I'm a nobody. I don't know what to say. What if they don't believe me?"

Read the two chapters if you are not familiar with the story, but to every excuse that Moses gave, God had an answer. Allow me to paraphrase for brevity:

MOSES: "I'm a nobody."

GOD: "I know. I created you." (Exodus 4:11)

MOSES: "I don't know what to say."

GOD: "I'll tell you what to say." (Exodus 4:12)

MOSES: "What if they don't believe me?"

GOD: "It's not your job." (Exodus 4:2-9)

At the very first instance of Moses' hesitation God promised him, "I will be with you..." (Exodus 3:12)

Next lesson: When God sends you, no excuses work.

When God sends you, he is saying, "I made you for this time, this place. I made you for this unique time."

God is not looking for extraordinary people. God is looking for ordinary people who will trust an extraordinary God.

Friday, May 13, 2005

Restoring Free Speech In Houses Of Worship


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Apparently, religious leaders had the right to express political preferences and engage in direct endorsement of candidates from the pulpit before 1954, when the current law went into effect.

Rep. Walter Jones of North Carolina, for the fourth time, has introduced a bill relaxing restrictions on political speech in churches. He says, "Each year we get more and more sponsors and I think there is more interest in this issue than has ever been."

This is the subject of a story by Kelley Beaucar Vlahos on Thursday, May 12, 2005 at Foxnews titled, Lawmaker Hopes to Open Churches to Political Speech.
Here's a quote:

WASHINGTON — As one pastor resigned this week amid a firestorm over the role of politics in his Baptist church, a U.S. congressman continues to try to make it easier for religious leaders and their congregations to engage in partisan political activity on the church's time and dime.

Read the rest of the story...

Jones told Foxnews that he strongly believes that if freedom of speech is not allowed to be expressed in our houses of worship, we will have people in the state legislatures and Congress who have no respect for the Bible or the Torah or other religious beliefs.

It is oppressive when we say that the church cannot speak its moral conscience. IRS guidelines consider words like "abortion" and "pro-life" as political speech. Opponents of free speech in houses of worship use the threat of revocation of tax exempt status against churches to intimidate them.

Let's pray that this bill flourishes. If the likes of the ACLU and Americans for the Separation of Church and State have their way, faith and churches will not even be allowed to exist, period.

Remember Canada.

ACLU's Hang Up On Public Display Of Religious Symbols


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I know, this fixation that the ACLU has over public display of faith and its symbols has gotten very tiresome. For some imagined reason they fear the end of civilization once a set of commandments, which includes "You shall not murder" and "You shall not steal," is displayed publicly. Never mind that the very same laws they claim to uphold are based on the very same commandments.

In John Gibson's May 13, 2005 Interview Archive feature at Foxnews titled, "Battle Over Cross in Cemetery," the same pattern continues.

Here are some excerpts:
JOHN GIBSON, HOST: An Ohio chapter of the ACLU taking issue with a cross in a cemetery. The group says the monument amounts to an illegal endorsement of Christianity by the government. Now the son of the man who put up the cross is fighting back to make sure this memorial stays put.

STEVE KARNS, ADVOCATE FOR CROSS...: Well, we got a monument dedicated to the Korean War men that died out of Vinton County.

Read the rest of the article...

The social system we live in thrives in a delicate balance arrived at through the tension generated by opposing views. When only one side is allowed to prevail, that side tends to go overboard on its ideals, creating a lopsided status quo that eventually makes life miserable overall.

At least that, I'll give to the ACLU. Man after all is fallen in nature. His very imperfection guarantees the nightmare the ACLU dreads, whether their side or the other prevails.

The ACLU's ideals share the same ignominious places as communism and socialism in the "dustbins of history." Still, credit them for vigorously pursuing their myopic vision. They provide weight to a side that opens up opportunity to build towards a balance-producing tension.

The task of those who will understand is to just as vigorously provide the needed counterweight. Contentious, I know, but necessary.

Where is the believer in all this? The believer follows his conscience, abides by the Word of God in conducting himself in society, and prays so that God will intervene whenever one side or another threatens to overturn the balance achieved by the forces built into our social fabric known as checks and balances.

The believer is to live as though the LORD is to return at any instant. It is only at Jesus' reign that the believer will realize the justice, truth, peace, and happiness he longs for in social life.

Thursday, May 12, 2005

You Are God's Answer


Posted by Hello

Moses plainly heard the LORD say to him from the burning bush:
The LORD said, "I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey--" (Exodus 3:7, 8)

God has seen. God has heard. Now he has come down to rescue Moses' people, the Hebrews. Hallelujah!

But hold it. Let's not celebrate too soon. The LORD was not done speaking yet. He then said:
"So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt." (Exodus 3:10)

God came down. But it was Moses that had to go.

Jonah tried to ignore God's command to go to Nineveh to warn them that in their wickedness the LORD was about to rain judgment upon them. Let's cut through the fish episode and fast forward to when Jonah finally obeys. Once he did, one short evangelistic speech from him was all it took for the Ninevites to realize their need to repent and they were saved.

The LORD saw the wickedness. But it was Jonah that had to go.

Jesus proclaimed:
"...take heart! I have overcome the world." (John 16:33)

But his great commission to every believer says:
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. (Matthew 28:19, 20)

Jesus has overcome the world. But it is every Christian that must go.

We worship a powerful God. He spoke the universe to existence. But in his sovereign will, he chooses to utilize the humble things of this world in order to accomplish his kingdom's plans. He chooses to work through plain folks (Moses was no Pharaoh, Jonah was no Ninevite king) like myself and you, inviting us to partner with him to do his mighty works.

The LORD's message? You are his answer. He has chosen you and placed you in the unique place you are today to fulfill for him a purpose:
From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. (Acts 17:26)

What purpose? God's kingdom is a process. As the LORD builds and expands, you must take your place along the wall being constructed. With every soul won to Christ, every kind act offered to the needy, every offering of worship to the glory of God, the wall keeps getting built up. You don't need to go far to find your spot. God has you exactly where he wants you. In your home, in your school, in your work place, in your neighborhood, in your ball club, in your website.
Therefore I stationed some of the people behind the lowest points of the wall at the exposed places, posting them by families, with their swords, spears and bows. After I looked things over, I stood up and said to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people, "Don't be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes." (Nehemiah 4:13, 14)

"Don't be afraid of them...Remember the LORD...and fight." Take up your position along the wall. And do what you find yourself good at.

You are God's answer.

Wednesday, May 11, 2005

My Hilarious Dad--This Week


Posted by Hello
Artwork provided courtesy of James "theo" Theopistos. See his artwork at BibleVerseArt.com, which is owned and operated by Omni Visions Digital Media Services.

It is our practice in The LORD My Dad on Wednesdays to lighten up and post humor or inspiration. We do so to call attention also to the humorous facet of the LORD's character.

On anniversaries the wise husband always forgets the past...but never the present.

When the minister picked up the phone, Special Agent Struzik from the IRS was on the line.

"Hello, is this the minister?"

"Yes, this is."

"I'm calling to inquire about a member of your congregation, a Dr. Shipe. Do you recognize the name?"

"Yes, he is a member of our congregation. How can I be of service?"

"Well, on last year's tax return, the doctor claimed that he made a sizable tax-deductable contribution to your church. Is this true?"

"Well, I'll have to have our bookkeeper verify this information for you. How much did Dr. Shipe say he contributed?"

"Twenty five thousand dollars," answered Agent Struzik. "Can you tell me if that amount is true?"

There is a long pause. "I'll tell you what," replied the minister.......

"Call back tomorrow. I'm sure it will be."

While on vacation with my son and his family, I shared a room with my 4-year old granddaughter.

One morning when she awoke, she told me she had some nice dreams and proceeded to tell me about them.

I told her I wished that I was able to dream like she does.

She said, "But you can't because you snore too much."

Source:
Pastor Tim's List
http://www.cybersalt.org

-----------------------------------------

QUOTE FUNNIES

Sports bloopers from the "salary is inversely proportional to IQ" crowd:

"It's about 90% strength and 40% technique."
~ Johnny Walker, world middleweight wrist-wrestling champion, on what it takes to be a champ

"If I wasn't talking, I wouldn't know what to say."
~ Chico Resch, New York Islanders goaltender

"We have only one person to blame, and that's each other."
~ Barry Beck, New York Ranger, on who started a brawl during the National Hockey League's Stanley Cup playoffs

"The doctors X-rayed my head and found nothing."
~ Dizzy Dean explaining how he felt after being hit on the head by a ball in the 1934 World Series

"He fakes a bluff."
~ Ron Fairly, Giants broadcast announcer

"It could permanently hurt a batter for a long time."
~ Pete Rose, Cincinnati Red, speaking about a brushback pitch

"Fans, don't fail to miss tomorrow's game."
~ Dizzy Dean, baseball great turned sports announcer

"Me and George and Billy are two of a kind."
~ Mickey Rivers, Texas Rangers outfielder, on his warm relationship with Yankee owner Steinbrenner and manager Billy Martin

"I've never had major knee surgery on any other part of my body."
~ Winston Bennett, University of Kentucky basketball forward.

"Winfield goes back to the wall. He hits his head on the wall and it rolls off! It's rolling all the way back to second base! This is a terrible thing for the Padres."
~ Jerry Coleman, Padres broadcast announcer, attempting to tell radio listeners about a fly ball hit by a member of the opposing team

"His reputation preceded him before he got here."
~ Don Mattingly, New York Yankee, on Mets pitcher Dwight Gooden

"Even Napoleon had his Watergate."
~ Danny Ozark, Philadelphia Phillies manager, commenting on the team's ten-game losing streak

"We are experiencing audio technicalities."
~ Ralph Kiner, announcer for the New York Mets

"Folks, this is perfect weather for today's game. Not a breath of air."
~ Curt Gowdy, network sports announcer, on air

"I don't want to tell you any half-truths unless they're completely accurate."
~ Dennis Rappaport, boxing manager, explaining his silence regarding boxer Thomas Hearns

"A lot of people my age are dead at the present time."
~ Casey Stengel, baseball great, Yankees and Mets manager

"Are you any relation to your brother Marv?"
~ Leon Wood, New Jersey Nets guard, to Steve Albert, Nets TV commentator

"And Kansas City is at Chicago tonight, or is that Chicago at Kansas City? Well, no matter, Kansas City leads in the eighth, 4 to 4."
~ Jerry Coleman, Padres announcer, going through the scoreboard on air.

"Today is Father's Day, so everyone out there: Happy birthday!"
~ Ralph Kiner, announcer for the New York Mets

"All I said was that the trades were stupid and dumb, and they took that and blew it all out of proportion."
~ Ron Davis, Minnesota Twins pitcher, commenting on press reports quoting him as criticizing team managers for trading top players

"They throw Winfield out at second and he's safe."
~ Jerry Coleman, Padres broadcast announcer

"Formation drowning."
~ Alan Parry referring to synchronized swimming

"If you can't imitate him, don't copy him."
~ Yogi Berra

"I'm wearing these gloves for my hands."
~ Yogi Berra, when asked why he was wearing gloves

"I'd find the fellow who lost it, and if he was poor, I'd return it."
~ Yogi Berra, answering Casey Stengel's question "What would you do if you found a million dollars?"

"I don't know. I'm not in shape yet."
~ Yogi Berra, when asked his cap size

"The similarities between me and my father are different."
~ Dale Berra, Yogi Berra's son

MORE QUOTE FUNNIES

Quotes on the nature of the universe:

"Duct tape is like the Force. It has a light side, a dark side, and it holds the universe together...."
~ Carl Zwanzig

"There is a theory which states that if ever anybody discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable. There is another theory which states that this has already happened."
~ Douglas Adams

"Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former."
~ Albert Einstein

"Astronomers say the universe is finite, which is a comforting thought for those people who can't remember where they leave things."
~ Unknown

"In answer to the question of why it happened, I offer the modest proposal that our Universe is simply one of those things which happen from time to time."
~ Edward P. Tryon

"It is well to remember that the entire universe, with one trifling exception, is composed of others."
~ John Andrew Holmes

"Technology is a way of organizing the universe so that man doesn't have to experience it."
~ Max Frisch

"The universe is a big place, perhaps the biggest."
~ Kilgore Trout

"I'm astounded by people who want to `know' the universe when it's hard enough to find your way around Chinatown."
~ Woody Allen

"In the beginning the Universe was created. This has made a lot of people very angry and been widely regarded as a bad move."
~ Douglas Adams

"The crux...is that the vast majority of the mass of the universe seems to be missing."
~ William J. Broad

"Programming today is a race between software engineers striving to build bigger and better idiot-proof programs, and the Universe trying to produce bigger and better idiots. So far, the Universe is winning."
~ Rich Cook

"There is a coherent plan in the universe, though I don't know what it's a plan for."
~ Fred Hoyle

"We are an impossibility in an impossible universe."
~ Ray Bradbury

"My theology, briefly, is that the universe was dictated but not signed."
~ Christopher Morley

"I'm worried that the universe will soon need replacing. It's not holding a charge."
~ Edward Chilton

"The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us."
~ Calvin and Hobbes (Bill Watterson)

Source:
http://www.mikeysFunnies.com

Tuesday, May 10, 2005

Who Will Mentor The Next Generation?


Posted by Hello

Forgetfulness is not at all strange in the human individual. A slight distraction can cause some of us to forget what we were doing just seconds before our attention got redirected. Or some could suffer from it simply as a function of age.

But can a nation be forgetful? Apparently, it can. God’s Word even warns against it:
If you start thinking to yourselves, "I did all this. And all by myself. I'm rich. It's all mine!"- well, think again. Remember that GOD, your God, gave you the strength to produce all this wealth so as to confirm the covenant that he promised to your ancestors--as it is today.

If you forget, forget GOD, your God, and start taking up with other gods, serving and worshiping them, I'm on record right now as giving you firm warning: that will be the end of you; I mean it--destruction. You'll go to your doom--the same as the nations GOD is destroying before you; doom because you wouldn't obey the Voice of GOD, your God. (Deuteronomy 8:17-20 MsgB)

Does America remember that it exists by God’s power?
From one man he has made every nation of humanity to live all over the earth. He has given them the seasons of the year and the boundaries within which to live. (Acts 17:26 GW)

Does America remember that God distributes national blessings?
He makes nations great, and destroys them; he enlarges nations, and disperses them. (Job 12:23 NIV)

Does America remember that it exists for God’s glory?
For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. (Colossians 1:16 NIV)

Depending on which side of the culture wars you are on, you will likely either answer “yes” or say, “these are ridiculous questions”. In our time, the categorical "yes" that many would like to give in answer to these questions would also confound many.

The Problem.

What is America’s problem? Why this disparity in the nation’s consciousness?

While the disparity is easily discerned, America’s problems run deeper:
  • We are unthankful to God. We think that we got to be the greatest nation in the world because of what we can do.
  • We are disobedient to God. We think nothing of killing unborn babies, unnatural relationships, teaching children to disregard their parents’ authority, murdering the helpless, worshiping career, money and addictions.
  • We are apathetic. We think the next person will do what needs to be done so we could lay back and things will turn out alright.
  • We are disunited. Among Christians alone, there are hundreds of denominations in the U.S.
The Solution

What is the solution?

The highest calling of every single American is to pray.
...if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land. (2 Chronicles 7:14 NIV)

“If my people...” We humbly admit that we do not have the answer. But then we go to the One who has. America, as a nation, exists to reflect God’s glory. God does not exist to bless America.
"Let me tell you why you are here. You're here to be salt-seasoning that brings out the God-flavors of this earth. If you lose your saltiness, how will people taste godliness? You've lost your usefulness and will end up in the garbage. (Matthew 5:13 MsgB)

The need to repent is of utmost importance. How we model and act in the present will determine the shape and form of the future. The nation’s future rests in our young. Left to the world, the unthankfulness, the disobedience, the apathy and the disunity will become their way of life.

God makes us responsible for mentoring the next generation.

Most Significant Curriculum Decision


Posted by Hello

Here is one more update from the Liberty Counsel 'Alert!' page. Dated May 6, 2005 and titled, The Most Significant Curriculum Decision Ever Rendered, the update takes up the May 5th ruling by a Maryland federal court which blocked the entire homosexual sex education curriculum.

Here is a quote:
Yesterday's ruling by a Maryland federal court which blocked the entire homosexual sex education curriculum is the most significant curriculum decision ever rendered. This is the first successful federal constitutional challenge to such curriculum. In an article entitled "Future Shock" published in the pro-homosexual magazine, The Advocate, Patricia Warren once wrote: "Whoever captures the youth owns the future." Yesterday's decision snatched our youth out of the jaws of a radical homosexual agenda.

Read the rest of the update...

Read also in the same post the Child Evangelism Fellowship's strategy session at CEF's headquarters in Missouri to finalize a five-year plan to have a Good News Club in every public school in America.

Get behind the Liberty Counsel and the CEF in prayer and in kind.

Offering A Long-Term Solution


Posted by Hello

From the Liberty Counsel website's 'Alert!' pages, their May 5, 2005 post aptly titled, An Antidote to "Judges Gone Wild," traces the roots of judicial activism to law school. As an alternative, Liberty Counsel is offering a Legal Internship Program with a commitment to train a new generation who will respect the rule of law.

To quote the post:
Many organizations, conservative talk show hosts and politicians decry judicial activism today, but they offer no long-term solution. They have no credible plan for judicial reform.

The problem we face today with judicial activism begins (in) law school, where aspiring students are taught that the law evolves and there is no objective truth. We are committed to train a new generation who will respect the rule of law.

Read the rest of the post...

The year- round Legal Internship Program will be launched on May 31st. See how you could get behind this program that promises to turn interns into attorneys defending our faith in just two short years. Some will work in state and federal courts or other places of significant influence.

Liberty Counsel is proceeding with the program inspite of a significant budgetary constraint because the LORD has already placed before them a great opportunity to train the next generation and impact the future.

The Fight For The Nation's Courts


Posted by Hello

Titled, Business Week - Inside Bush's Supreme Team: In Fight for the Courts, Behind-the-Scenes Players Are Uniting the Right, this article has been in the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) website for some time now (April 25, 2005). We deemed it good to feature it here today as it is, to our view, a good account of how the forces are lining up in this looming battle of colossal proportions for vacant positions in the courts of the land.

Here's a quote:
With a Supreme Court vacancy all but certain this year, true-blue liberals, rabid-red conservatives, and activists of every stripe are amassing millions of dollars and mobilizing thousands of true believers for an air and ground war expected to eclipse every other legislative issue on the congressional agenda -- including Social Security and tax reform. Already the ideological struggle over the high court and the federal appellate bench has squelched scholarly discourse on jurisprudence...

Read the rest of the article...

Our aim is to inform. Nevertheless, we urge prayer in behalf of the Senate and the Judiciary. Pray for God's wisdom to be upon the senators so that they will do what is right not from the point of view of their ideologies but from the point of view of God. Pray that in the process, the Judiciary will be populated with God-fearing judges who will interpret the law according to the letter of the constitution of the land and not according to their own personal agenda.

Monday, May 09, 2005

Rather Than Stumble In The Dark...


For his May 5, 2005 commentary on the Prison Fellowship website's Breakpoint page, Chuck Colson features the films of Philip Anschutz, the Christian billionaire from Colorado who has just spent $150 million to film The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, the first of the Narnia books by C. S. Lewis. According to Colson, Anschutz is showing us what we’d find at the box office if Hollywood gave Americans the kind of films we really want to see.

Appropriately titled, Lighting a Hollywood Candle, the commentary likens Anschutz to Mel Gibson whose highly successful rendering of Jesus' last days leading to his crucifixion in The Passion of the Christ turned the doggedly secular Hollywood entertainment world upside down.

In writing about Anschutz, Colson shares many encouraging trends that may yet spell hope to the world-oriented post-Christian philosophied warping the Hollywood media machine insists on producing.

To quote Colson:

Of the twenty top-grossing films of all time, not a single one is rated R. Of the top fifty films, only five are rated R. Clearly, Americans want family fare they can take the kids to.

And yet, as Anschutz noted in a recent speech, since the year 2000, Hollywood has “turned out more than five times as many R-rated films as it has films rated G or PG or soft PG-13. . . . Don’t these figures make you wonder what’s wrong with Hollywood just from a business point of view?”

Read the rest of the commentary...

One of Philip Anschutz's films, by the way, is the recent Oscar award-winning movie on the life of Ray Charles called, Ray.

Here are more links for further information.

How Well Do You Know God?


Posted by Hello

(To skip the intro, scroll to bottom of this post and find quiz button.)

We live in a world today where sadly, those that are tasked with shaping our minds have become convinced that faith is only "what you sincerely believe." They do not accept truth as something independent of themselves. They think that truth is only what you make of it.

It is easy to see how flawed this self-centered thinking is. You can ask those that teach this to "sincerely believe" that if they walk in front of a speeding train they will not be crushed. Then ask them to walk in front of one.

Ask them to make it the truth that the sun does not rise in the morning. Then ask them to observe tomorrow if it really does not.

The trouble with those that believe they are only smart in following this school of thought is that they create their own gods. If not their own gods, they create their own ways to come to God. They claim we all believe in the same God, but there are many different ways to him.

We know how these claims fall to pieces in light of what Jesus said:


"I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6)

False teachers only succeed in driving a person hungrier for God. Man is created with a God-shaped hole in his heart that only God can fill. Man craves true knowledge of God. Until this craving is satisfied, there is an emptiness that grows inside.

Have you been up and down, far and near in search of something you just could not put your finger to? How well do you know God? Do you want to see if God is what will finally fill this void inside you that has been bothering you?

Here is a really neat interactive way to find out. Click on the "How Well Do You Know God" button below. Follow the prompts and just answer a few short, simple questions.

At the very least, you should find out how well you know God. When you do, you should know how to get that vacuum inside of you finally filled with the Spirit of God.

God bless you.

How Well Do You Know God?



Interactive quiz courtesy of:

IN TOUCH MINISTRIES - The Bible teaching ministry of Dr. Charles Stanley, Pastor of the First Baptist Church of Atlanta, Georgia. IN TOUCH reaches the world through television, radio, magazine, and the world wide web to provide solid biblical teaching for today's issues.

Sunday, May 08, 2005

Happy Mother's Day!


To my wife, the wonderful mother of my kids, I love you!

The bouquet of roses, the breakfast in bed and the humble gifts your kids and I offered you this morning hardly represent our gratitude for all that you fulfill in your God-ordained place in our lives and our love for you.

To your mother and mine, thank you for raising us. We know the odds you went through. We are grateful for your steadfastness. Because you were obedient to God's calling, my wife and I enjoy this day as God would have us.

To all the mothers in the world, God bless you!

Saturday, May 07, 2005

How Mommy Day Began


History of Mother's Day

Contrary to popular belief, Mother's Day was not conceived in the boardroom of greeting card companies. The earliest tributes to mothers date back to the annual spring festival the Greeks dedicated to Rhea, the mother of many deities, and to the offerings ancient Romans made to their Great Mother of Gods, Cybele. Christians celebrated this festival on the fourth Sunday in Lent in honor of Mary, mother of Christ. In England this holiday was expanded to include all mothers and was called Mothering Sunday.

In the United States, Mother's Day started nearly 150 years ago, when Anna Marie Reeves Jarvis, an Appalachian homemaker, organized a day to raise awareness of poor health conditions in her community, a cause she believed would be best advocated by mothers. She called it "Mother's Work Day."

In 1905 when Anna Marie Reeves Jarvis died, her daughter, also named Anna, began a campaign to memorialize the life work of her mother. Legend has it that young Anna remembered a Sunday school lesson that her mother gave in which she said, "I hope and pray that someone, sometime, will found a memorial mother's day. There are many days for men, but none for mothers."

The memorial we now know as Mother's Day was founded by Miss Anna Jarvis in tribute to her mother. The first fully organized Mother's Day program was held at the Andrews Methodist Episcopal Church in Grafton, Taylor County, West Virginia, on May 10, 1908. The honored mother had already laid the foundation for such a day in the last fifty years of her life.

On May 10, 1908, the third anniversary of Mrs. Jarvis' death, fully-prepared programs were held at the Andrews Methodist Episcopal Church in Grafton and in Philadelphia, launching the observance of a general memorial day for all mothers. The Grafton service was planned and prepared by Miss Jarvis. She sent a telegram, read by Mr. L. L. Loar, which defined the purpose of the day:

"...To revive the dormant filial love and gratitude we owe to those who gave us birth. To be a home tie for the absent. To obliterate family estrangement. To create a bond of brotherhood through the wearing of a floral badge. To make us better children by getting us closer to the hearts of our good mothers. To brighten the lives of good mothers. To have them know we appreciate them, though we do not show it as often as we ought...

This day is intended that we may make new resolutions for a more active thought to our dear mothers. By words, gifts, acts of affection, and in every way possible, give her pleasure, and make her heart glad every day, and constantly keep in memory Mother's Day; when you made this resolution, lest you forget and neglect your dear mother, if absent from home write her often, tell her of a few of her noble good qualities and how you love her."


On the occasion of the first official Mother's Day service on May 10, 1908, Miss Anna Jarvis sent 500 white carnations, chosen by herself, to the Andrews Methodist Episcopal Church, in Grafton, West Virginia. In a telegram to the congregation, Miss Jarvis stated that:

"...Each one present will be given a white carnation; mothers will be given two, in memory of the day.

These five hundred carnations are given by a loyal, loving daughter in honor and sacred memory of her good and faithful mother, Mrs. Ann M. Jarvis, who worked faithfully and earnestly for twenty long years, as an earnest teacher in our Sunday School, who only a few years ago departed to that better world to reap the reward of her labors here.

Every one is asked to wear this flower.

The white carnation is preferred because it may be thought to typify some of the virtues of motherhood; whiteness stands for purity; its lasting qualities, faithfulness; its fragrance, love; its wide field of growth, charity; its form, beauty..."

The following year she sent 700 carnations for the same purpose, and over the years, sent over 10,000 carnations as personal gifts to the Andrews Church. Carnations - red for living and white for deceased - are now worn world-wide as emblems of the purity, strength and endurance of motherhood.

The first Mother's Day proclamation was issued by Governor William E. Glasscock of West Virginia on April 26, 1910. In May 1914, Representative Heflin of Alabama and Senator Sheppard of Texas introduced a joint resolution, at the request of Miss Jarvis, naming the second Sunday in May as Mother's Day, and the resolution was passed in both Houses. President Woodrow Wilson approved it, and William Jennings Bryan, Secretary of State, proclaimed it. In the President's proclamation which followed, he ordered that the flag be displayed on all government buildings in the U.S. and foreign possessions. Later Mr. Heflin, co-author of the resolution said:

"The flag was never used in a more beautiful and sacred cause than when flying above that tender, gentle army, the mothers of America."


The second Sunday of May has become the most popular day of the year to
dine out in the United States. Telephone lines record their highest
traffic, as sons and daughters everywhere take advantage of this day to
honor and to express appreciation of their mothers.

Source:
Thomas S. Ellsworth
The Good Clean Fun web site http://www.slonet.org/~tellswor/

It Was Beautiful Then, Even More So Now



BEFORE I WAS A MOM

Before I was a Mom
I made and ate hot meals.
I had unstained clothing.
I had quiet conversations on the phone.

Before I was a Mom
I slept as late as I wanted
And never worried about how late I got into bed.
I brushed my hair and my teeth everyday.

Before I was Mom
I cleaned my house each day.
I never tripped over toys or forgot words to lullabies.

Before I was a Mom
I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom
I had never been puked on
Pooped on
Spit on
Chewed on
Peed on
Or pinched by tiny fingers

Before I was a Mom
I had complete control of my mind
My thoughts
My body
And my time.
I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom
I never held down a screaming child
So that doctors could do tests
Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom
I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put it down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces
When I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small
Could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom
I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body.
I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond between a Mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small
Could make me feel so important.

Before I was a Mom
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night
Every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay
I had never known the warmth
The joy
The love
The heartache
The wonderfulment
Or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much before I was a Mom.


Source:
http://www.mikeysFunnies.com
[forwarded by Peps]

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