Giving Thanks

How many times have we heard this advise, "Be thankful for what you have because there are people who have far less than you do."? How hard is it to be thankful when you are in the middle of something like a job loss or the loss of a loved one or a marriage breakup? It's extremely difficult, in those circumstances, to say, I'm thankful for this or that because, let's face it, you are busy dealing with the day-to-day feelings and events having to do with your life. And sometimes life is cruel. It's hard. However, as my dear brother in Christ and my pastor says, "It could be worse."

Although it can be hard to give thanks while you are experiencing life's troubles, we should take time to look at the bigger picture of life and that's our eternal destination. Really and truly, the time we spend on this planet battling this or that is an extremely short time compared to where we will spend eternity.

Think of it this way, you go to the doctor to get your flu shot and you hate getting shots. Many people do hate that because it can hurt a bit. Well, think of the protection you get in the long term for a short term amount of pain. That's what life is. It's that very short pain we endure for a lifetime of pain-free, worry-free living with our heavenly Father. For that we should give thanks.

As Christ followers we experience what others experience. We go through times of anguish, of loss, of anger, but we have this to be thankful for, our LORD and Savior Jesus Christ knows exactly what we are going through and He cares for us. He helps us endure and get through those times and learn from those lessons. We come out of "the valley" better, stronger and able to tell others who experience the same things that it will eventually be OK because God Himself sees you through it all. For that we should give thanks.

So, my friends, if you are experiencing something negative in your life at this time of year, truly give thanks to God who will see you through it. Give thanks that you have the hope He gives us who have been adopted into His family. Give thanks that you have what you have even if it's not much. Give thanks that God gave His Son for you, so that you'd be able to have a relationship with Him.

To anyone, and I truly don't know if anyone reads this, but to those who do, thank you. Next time you're here, leave a comment. I'd love to hear from you.

May you have a peaceful and blessed Thanksgiving, finding something to thank God for.

May God bless you and may God bless America!

Christmas Parade Name Change Causes Fireworks

Every year the village of Patchogue, Long Island has a Christmas boat parade. It's very well attended (approximately 1500 people show up to see the parade) and has become a well-loved annual community event. That is until this year. The Greater Patchogue Foundation, who runs the annual event, decided that this year political correctness would rule. Apparently fueled by complaints that the Christmas parade was not inclusive enough (apparently all the atheists out there were insulted that they weren't represented in the name of a Christian holiday parade), the Greater Patchogue Foundation changed the name of the parade to the Holiday Boat Parade. Enter the Grucci Fireworks company who were sponsoring the parade.

For those who don't know, Grucci is a long-time and much admired Long Island company. The Grucci family has been providing spectacular fireworks displays for most of the major events around the New York metropolitan area and the country for many, many years. They are unmatched in the fireworks industry. Well, the Gruccis were providing fireworks for this year's Patchogue Christmas Boat parade and when they found out that Christmas was eliminated from the name of the parade, they pulled out. Good for them! Not only did they pull out of the parade, but they encouraged people to not attend. Well, it seems like people listened because the attendance was down a whopping 33% from years gone by. I say good for the Gruccis and all those who stayed away.

Let's face it, this is Christmas time, folks. The nativity display, colorful lights, the inclusion of Santa, the decorating of trees and the like are all CHRISTMAS things. They don't apply to any other celebration. Sorry to those who don't feel included in a celebration that they have no connection to. My advice would be to either embrace the Christmas theme of the year (like many Jews do in celebrating the "secular" (if there truly is such a thing) part of the season) or attend a Christian church at this time of year and see what all the joy and celebrating is all about. Otherwise, stop your bellyaching and come to grips with the fact that we are all different and celebrate different holidays and not everyone has to be included in everything. As a Christian, I don't lament that I am not included in the celebrations of Jews or Muslims.

Jesus was right when he said that "people will hate you because they hated me first." How true LORD.

So, this year, and every year, say "Merry Christmas". Don't deny the time of year. It's Christmas time! It's that time of year that we celebrate the birth of the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ. Whether people believe in Him or not doesn't change the fact that He is who He is. And if people hate you for it, thank God, because He's the one who sustains us through the times of persecution and it's because of Him we suffer and what better sign in our lives that we are living a life pleasing to God.

Merry Christmas to all.

God bless you and may God bless America!

Where to Go from Here?

Well, I've settled down now that the election is over. I'm not happy with the person who got in. I took the upside down American flag, signifying distress, off my computer desktop at work. My American flag is still not back up at home, but eventually it will be. It's the symbol of something I believe in, not necessarily the person in the Oval office.

What do we do now? Well, God tells us in the Bible that we're supposed to pray for our leaders. That's what I'll do. It doesn't mean that I think the person is great or a shining star or anything like that. It means the person is now the leader of this country and he needs prayer. This country needs prayer. That's what we need to do.

So, I will take up the task of praying, not only for the President, but for the government (that includes state and local) and this country.

I believe we are entering into a time that God is showing what life is like without Him. America, it's time to open your eyes at the reality. Life without God is not good. It is a life with turmoil and immorality. It is a life without hope. That hope is Jesus Christ.

As Christ followers, we need to pray. That's one of the things we're called to do. I, for one, will endeavor to be obedient to our Father and do so. But not just out of obedience, but out of love for people who are lost; those without Christ.

Join with me and let's all create a chorus, a blanket of prayer for all the lost in this country and around the world.

God bless you and may God bless America.

Changing the Country One Heart at a Time

I have come to realize that we cannot change this country. You and I cannot effect change. God must change us one heart at a time. When people's hearts change, this country will change. That's the reality we live in. It's always been and it always will be.

As Christians we should stand up for what is Biblical. We cannot stand silent on topics such as abortion, marriage, assisted suicide and the like. We should seek out candidates and public servants that are closely aligned with Biblical views. However, true change will only come when people change. That change will only come when God changes those hearts.

The "job" at hand is and always will be to introduce people to Jesus. Not by pounding them over the head with the Bible and telling them where they are going wrong, but by living our lives in a way that they will see we are different, thus prompting questions and curiosity. Yes, friends, we should be DIFFERENT, not the same. We should stand out, not blend in. When the crowd goes one way, we should go the other. When people say one thing, we should say the other, or better yet, keep silent. There will be some sacrifices. We'll lose friends. Some of our family will be alienated. We may even lose a job. However, for the cause of the Gospel, all of that is insignificant compared to souls being saved and hearts being changed. Jesus sacrificed His life for us while we were still sinners, enemies of His, so having some temporary discomfort should not dissuade us from doing what we have to to spread His good news.

People are not our enemy. Obama is not our enemy. Neither are liberals or al-Qaeda. The enemy is the prince of this world. Our enemy is our heavenly Father's enemy. After all, we are His children. I had an uncle that if you picked a fight with his kids, you picked a fight with him. That's the way we should be. The enemy has picked a fight with our Father, we should jump in. After all, we have Him on our side. Did you ever get in a fight and have your big brother standing just behind you? How did you feel? Pretty brave, I'm sure. Pretty invincible. You felt like you couldn't lose. How much more should we feel like that with Almighty God at our back?

Tuesday was a mighty wake up call to me. I have focused too much on doing things myself. That's why I started this blog, to try to help change things. What a failure that was. I don't even know if anyone is reading this, but I have to do this. I hope that someone will come by and see this and it will help them. I know I cannot change them, but maybe I can help. That's going to be my focus; getting the word, God's Word out.

Will I speak out on issues? For sure I will. The President will be under the microscope and I'll be there when he messes up. However, I will be praying that God will change his heart. That God will influence, not only him, but all of the members of our government. We all should pray and we should get out the word, God's Word. The good news, the Gospel. That's our commission and we should be obedient with enthusiasm and join the fight for the hearts of this country. That's the only way this country will surely change in way that is pleasing to God.

God bless you.

May God change America.

There's Hope, but Not in Men

I have finally come to realize that the only true hope we have is in Jesus Christ. Time after time I have put my hope in men and I've been burned to one extent or another. Now, it's almost as if I have to ignore people and just focus on Jesus. I don't mean to ignore people as if they don't exist, I mean to ignore them to the point that I put hope in them that they'll be Christ-like in any way. That time is over for me. I will expect the worst, because nine times out of ten, that's what you get.

To the contrary, there has never been a time that I put my hope in our Lord and Savior and have been disappointed. From being able to buy my house, to jobs to getting us through the death of a baby, God has ALWAYS come through. Why is it so hard to remember that when times get tough? I just don't know.

Dear friends, I wish I could say that "this too shall pass", but the reality is different. The newly elected President is set to wreck this country for many decades to come by appointing up to five (depending on his number of terms) Supreme Court Justices. America will cease to exist as we know it because he will appoint justices not only to the Supreme Court, but to the federal courts that will "have empathy" for certain groups. No longer will justice be blind in America. Hold on if you're not in one of those special groups. Your life is about to change and not for the better.

Anyway, the good news is always the good news. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever! Amen?

Amen.

We are called to pray for the president. I have to tell you that I will have trouble in that regard. I have to tell you that I have unsubscribed from "The Presidential Prayer Team". Right now, I just don't have it in me. I know my Father in heaven wants me to do that. I will. I'm just not there yet.

For those of you who consider yourselves conservatives, we have work to do. We have to seek out, find and recruit those who will run on the values of Ronald Reagan. We need people with backbone. People who can communicate that message in a meaningful way to mom and pop America. And people who more closely hold values in line with Biblical values. That is most important. Maybe even consider running for some elected office yourself.

Can we change this country? No, we can't, but we can do our part to be used by God to change America. And that change will come, yes, even revival will come if we get the Gospel out. That's the change we need in America. America needs the LORD. He's the agent of change. He changes the heart. When the heart changes, the person changes. One by one, as people accept Jesus our country will change. That's our mission, yes our commission to spread the Gospel. Oh, there'll be people who reject it. Even the great Christian, Paul the apostle, got run out of city after city. However, he kept going. He focused on his commission, to bring the Gospel to the gentiles. That was his one goal. He knew, while he was doing that, God would be with him and God will be with us as we do what we are commissioned to do, bring the Gospel to those in our community, state and country.

Although the future of America seems dark, Jesus, the Light of the world, can shatter any darkness brought on by those who so not live according to His will and his tenets. It's our job and, indeed, should be our desire to bring the Light to those around us who are shrouded in the darkness. If we don't do that, who will?

God bless you and yours.

May God have mercy on America.

Psalm 146

The Word of God is always a comfort. From Psalm 146:

3 Do not put your trust in princes,
in mortal men, who cannot save.

4 When their spirit departs, they return to the ground;
on that very day their plans come to nothing.

5 Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the LORD his God,

6 the Maker of heaven and earth,
the sea, and everything in them—
the LORD, who remains faithful forever.

Post Mortem - America

I'm wearing black today and I took my American flag down this morning. I rolled it up and put it away in my garage. Its symbolism lost all of its meaning last night. I no longer identify with it. I don't want to identify with it. I'm ashamed and dismayed.

It took 232 years, but I believe America is now dead as a republic, as a world leader and as that shining beacon to the world that we were for all those years. We've now taken our place in the background with all the other mediocre countries in the world. Overnight, we've become Europe.

Worse yet, we've spit in God's eye. The 86% of us that identify ourselves somehow with Christianity, have said, God means nothing in our lives and how we live it. Shame on us all.

I would say at this point the government should immediately begin purging God's name from the money, the Pledge and all government buildings. We've proven for once and for all, it was all a sham. That God really has played no part in this country for many years now. Those who hold close to God must now come to grips with the fact that America truly is a Godless country and we are in the minority from now on. True believers make up a very small part of this country. God forgive us. We've taken a country You gave us and turned it over to the forces of darkness. How can we ever recover?

For me, after trying to recover from such a devastating event as this past election, I must focus for once and for all on being a citizen of heaven. That's where my allegiance should have been all along. God forgive me for getting caught up in the politics of this world. A world that is passing away. A world that will be here for a fleeting moment. One that will be burnt up on the glorious day. Even so, LORD Jesus come quickly!

I don't know how you will react to this election. I haven't a clue about anything anymore, except this, that Jesus Christ is LORD, He is Savior, He is God. He hasn't changed today. We've changed. He hasn't left us, we've left Him. His face might have turned from us as a nation, but He loves His children and although we've messed up royally this time, His love endures.

Make this commitment today, that you will focus on your heavenly citizenship. That your commitment to the great commission will be refocused to getting the job done. That you will ask God for boldness, for courage and for wisdom in order to be pleasing in His sight and not to worry about what is happening around us.

It's not going to be easy, but you know that the early church went through much more. They were being killed for their faith. Those who followed "The Way" as it was called, were seen by the Roman government as nothing more than religious zealots bent on overthrowing the government. They did not worship Caesar, so they were summarily killed in one way or another.

Our commitment must be equal to the early disciples. We must have the same level of boldness and courage. With God on our side who can harm us? No one. Not the new President or his political party. In reality, they are in need of prayer. They are about to send this country down a path it probably will never recover from. Shame on them and shame on us for allowing it.

Dear friends, prayer is not more important today than it was yesterday, because it was important yesterday too. If you aren't praying regularly, I suggest you start. You, your family and friends and this land need it now more than ever.

The hope we have in Jesus Christ has not changed because of what happened yesterday. That hope is still there if you have given your life over to Him. The One on whose shoulders the government rests is alive and well today no matter what place He is given in this land.

That is the only truth that is keeping me going today.

God bless you and yours.

May God have mercy on this land.

America Died Tonight

My country is no more. It died tonight with this election. I believe evil won tonight. This battle goes to those who serve the prince of this world.

There's nothing that can be said right now except if you are a Christian, a God-fearing, Bible-believing Christian, pray. Pray that this travesty will serve as a wake up call for all Christians in America and we will finally turn from our wicked ways and humble ourselves, so that God will heal this land.

Hold on, it's going to get very ugly.

God bless you.

May God have mercy on us.

God Bless America

Today we elect a new President.

When I went to vote this morning, I couldn't help but feel like I was going to a funeral.

I am hoping that feeling will not be justified tomorrow.

God bless you.

May God bless America.

2 Thessalonians 3:3

Change is Coming with History in the Making

No matter who gets elected tomorrow, history will be made. Change will be brought to this country. If Barack Obama is elected, this country will get its first African-American President. I believe that will be the smallest change we, as Americans, will experience if he gets in. If America elects John McCain, Sarah Palin will be the first ever female Vice President of this country. The first female to be "a heartbeat away" from being President.

Not only will history be made, but change will come to this great land. Change in the form of bigger, more oppressive government will come if Obama is elected. We will be plunged into a European-type government that will change America in ways we don't want. We'll have a more Communist-like approach to government. Higher taxes and unemployment are sure to follow. It won't be the republicans doing. The democrats will have both the congress and the presidency wielding power that will be unchecked. They will care only about their agenda and not what's good for this country. They think they know better than the founding fathers did. They think their version of America is what is best. It's not. Europe is our example and they aren't exactly burning up the world in economic prosperity. They aren't safer than we are. They have higher taxes than we do. They pay much more for fuel than we do. They are weaker in every way than we are, yet the democrats want to be like them. I don't get it. Being America worked just fine for the last 200 or so years. I don't know why we have to change now.

Sure, there are some things that need fixing. The economy and our energy policy. However, there's always something to fix. That doesn't mean that we need to fundamentally change our form of government to do so. We should fix those things within the framework of the government we have.

Change will come tomorrow. There's one thing that won't change, though. The knowledge and fact that our Almighty Savior, Jesus Christ is the same and will never ever change. I refer you to Hebrews 13:8. What a comfort that is that no matter who is leading this country, who is wrecking our country, Jesus is the same and will never change. Why is that important? Think of this. How can we count on the promises He gives, if He is ever changing? We would never be able to count on the hope He gives us. We would never know how He would respond to our life situations. Why would we follow a God like that? This is part of the uniqueness of our God. The only true God. He never changes. That has to be a comfort to us.

So, no matter who gets in tomorrow and however this country changes in the years to come, know this dear friends, Jesus will never change. He'll be the same loving God He has always been. He's the only one we can count on even when we can't count on ourselves. He's the one constant. The one rock. He's our God and we can count on Him and His promises.

Don't forget to vote and vote your beliefs.

God bless you and may God bless America.