Life Here and There

I’ll be brief. I’m moved…

• I’m moved by Rick Warren’s prayer. It was nice to hear him pray the entire model prayer and to call for civility when differing, which indeed allows for differing.
• I’m moved by the election of America’s first African-American president. That’s significant.
• I’m moved by what his election says about the sanctity of life. What? Well, just watch this.
• I’m moved by the respect Bush paid to Obama, and likewise.
• I’m moved by a nation showing up in the millions to welcome their new leader.
• I’m moved by the election of a man who cares about many of the things I care about.

I’m also concerned…

• I’m concerned about the sanctity of life (this is the most pro-abortion President in our history).
• I’m concerned about the growing power of government.
• I’m concerned about taking a softer approach with militant Muslim nations.
• I’m concerned about our security.

I’m also positive. I believe in giving the benefit of the doubt. Barack Obama begins today with a clean slate. We shall see what unfolds. President Bush was a different man with different viewpoints just a few years into his first term. Some of those changes were positive, some negative. God can change the heart of Obama as well – he seems tender enough.

I’m also prayerful. I’m commanded to pray for my new President and have a heart to do so. Here’s what I’m praying for…

• His safety.
• His family’s unity (he sets a great example here).
• His life to be in balance.
• His cabinet to be genuinely helpful.
• His heart to change on abortion and other moral issues.
• His courage in the face of world threats.
• His legacy to be as positive as it is so far when he leaves office in four or eight years.

Hail to the Chief, but Praise to King Jesus – my supreme and sovereign Lord. What’s your delight/concern/prayer for your new President today?

In a recent blog, I strongly supported President Bush’s stance against government-supported embryonic stem-cell research. I am a pro-lifer only because of the Bible’s teaching (which I believe to be absolute truth) that life begins as an act of God at conception, and further that the responsibility to terminate life lies solely in His hands. Any society that does not recognize murder as a crime has little basis for any law at all.

This past week, however, President Bush commended Dr. Andrew on Eschenbach (FDA Commissioner) for his decision to allow the “Plan B” pill to be sold over-the-counter to adults. I’m surprised at the President’s tone considering his desire to foster a “culture of life” in America. The data from research on the pill shows divided evidence. The company that produces the pill, Barr Pharmaceuticals, claims that the pill prevents fertilization up to 72 hours after intercourse, but some research has shown that fertilization takes place but implantation is prevented. Essentially, the pill may equal an immediate abortion.

Beyond the issue of aborting life is the issue of sexual responsibility, which America seems to shun as an old-fashioned ideal. I believe that the last forty to fifty years have been a period of rediculous cutting lose of all responsibility in sexuality. Yes, I’m for sex only in the context of a covenant marriage between a man and a woman, but the issue is larger today than mere domestic partners and pre-marital sex. We live in a society akin to that of ancient Corinth or Ephesus. Sexual activity outside the bonds of matrimony has become idol-worship for Americans. Promiscuity and perversion is simply part of our culture.

This pill will further encourage a stripping away of sexual fidelity and responsibility. Sexual predators will see an easy out – lure a young girl into intercourse, then have her take a pill. Whatever happened to the very simple, common sense idea that if we reserve sex for a God-ordained scenario of marriage only, we’ll stay out of trouble?

The bleeding hearts among us will instantly cry “freedom” for women who are inconvenienced by the natural (that means God-designed) results of their own choices. They will also cry “tyranny” toward women who have been victimized through rape or incest. But the bottom line for me has little to do with the woman in question. I have the utmost compassion for a woman who has been the victim of rape or incest, but the reality remains that life only begins if God wills! Think of the face of that beautiful baby that comes forth from the young woman’s womb who became pregnant by no volition of her own. God declared He wanted no child to ever suffer and wants them all to be saved and to live in heaven with Him forever.

Mr. President, I believe we not only need a “culture of life” which would have been supported better by keeping this pill out of the hands of irresponsible people, but we also must have a revival of a “culture of responsibility.”

I know that we cannot change the hearts of sexually irresponsible people by making abortion (even in pill form) illegal. Nevertheless, conscience compels me to speak out continuously on behalf of the innocent unborn and young girls, who will really bear the brunt of this decision. Sex is not a toy! A pill cannot provide the easy out from the emotional damage done by sexual irresponsibility.

Mr. President, I love you and pray for you daily. I agree with your basic philosophy of life, but you kind of blew it on this one.

Read Story Here

Today, President Bush took a bold stand for life when he vetoed Congress’ bill concerning stem cell research. The bill would have reversed previous policies set by the Bush Administration which limited embryonic stem cell research only to existing lines of embryos. President Bush was unequivocal that every embryo is a precious life, created with dignity.

Interestingly, there were people present in the crowd whose lives testified to the effects of funding the right kind of stem cell research. A dozen children were present who were originally conceived for in vitro fertilization but who were adopted instead of being discarded. I will agree with the liberal media that Bush did not decide with the majority of Americans on this issue, and certainly not the majority of politicians in Washington today.

I would never presume to be a scientist, nor am I much of a politician. On this issue, however, the facts seem clear. God creates life at conception, whether in a mother’s womb or a petrie dish, and it is up to no one but God to end that life. It is especially selfish to seek to destroy the most innocent and helpless among us to spare the lives of the already-living. In any other culture, with any less scientific practice, this would be termed as barbarianism, the strong preying on the weak.

Our President is not always right, but on this issue, I say, “Amen, Mr. President!”

“Marriage is honorable in all…” -Hebrews 13:4

Perhaps the hottest social topic of the moment is the Federal Marriage Amendment, scheduled for vote on the Senate floor in the next few days. The liberal pundits have come out screaming that this is simply a ploy by President Bush and conservative Republicans to drum up votes for the November election. That may, in some respect, be true as no politician is immune to the temptation to “play politics.” But as a Christian, am I merely being duped into focusing on an issue because my conservative leaders have pulled the wool over my eyes? Hardly.

For me, as a conservative Christian, the Federal Marriage Amendment is an issue today because of the pressing need to defend the basic institution of society against attack by a liberal minority. Scripture is an eternally binding revelation of God upon my life and I’m to stand for its truths. If Jesus is Lord of who I am in church on Sunday, then He is equally Lord of who I am as a citizen in the voting booth.

The fact is, no Amendment would be necessary were it not for the imminent threat that at some time and place, a judge will reinterpret the law, override the will of the people, and choose on the side of immorality to defend gay marriage and thereby redefine what marriage is. This judicial relativism has the potential to stray far beyond the realm of normality. Who is to say what marriage is? Perhaps it could be polygamy? If such radically immoral groups such as the “Man-Boy Love Association” had their way, it might be that marriage could be a union of a grown man and a young boy. Will that be the future of marriage?

I cannot presume to speak for the world, but I can, as a Bible-believing Christian, stand for my beliefs in the public square and I’ll not be shamed into the corner for doing so. The Old Testament revealed that a marital union was to be between members of the opposite sex. The New Testament plainly clarifies that marriage should be between one man and one woman, thereby excluding polygamy. For me, as a Christian, there is only one alternative – marriage must be preserved as between one man and one woman alone. If a Federal Marraige Amendment is what it takes to protect this timeless institution from the threat of jucial activism (a reality, not just a “Bush term”), then so be it.