Random Bits

"I walk through this sinful world as a 

pilgrim in a foreign country" - CH Spurgeon

Remember when the Muppets were cute, funny, and family friendly? Not any more.

A perfectly healthy woman commits medically assisted suicide because her daughter recently died. A report on the sad, macabre glorification of death by the Christian left.

While here on the Papal Victory Over Discernment Tour 2015 Mr. Pope canonized a new saint at the National Cathedral. At an early age (and much to my disappointment) I learned that canonization has nothing to do with a canon, which would have added immensely to the entertainment value of the ceremony. It wasn't until the Holy Spirit convicted me that I was able to find out what a saint really is.

These folks clearly don't read the bible or their own catechism. I know how these things go, the picture in the article probably contains ALL the protesters, plus a bystander or two.

The final blood moon of the 2014-2015 tetrad will happen this weekend!!! Breathless anticipation!!! Exclamation Points Abound!!! Will the world end with the Pope on American soil??? Puleeeezeee tell me I'm not the only one getting bored with the deception and the hucksterism.

Naghmeh Abedini is currently on a 21 day fast praying for the release of her husband American Pastor Saeed Abedini from an Iranian prison. She has currently attempted to engage help from Mr. Pope in obtaining her husband's release after Mr. Obama lied to her about his desire to get Pastor Saeed released.

Oops, I forgot Him again!

Giddy with the excitement of being the first Bishop of Rome to address a joint meeting of congress. Mr. Pope spoke on a good number of things, one of which was immigration.

When considering his stances on immigration, keep in mind that Mr. Pope is from a country that gladly received 5,000 Nazi war criminals, and now lives in a country that only allows immigration by royal appointment only, and that appointment can only come from the King of the Vatican, who turns out to be Mr. Pope himself. (Which explains why there's only 850 citizens of King Pope's country, and that King Pope's country has the highest GDP of any country on earth) And, surprise of surprises, there's no record of King Pope's country, the Vatican, accepting a single solitary muslim refugee. Then again, when did any pope ever chose to lead by example?

Again he spoke at length of social justice, climate change, the environment, abolishing the death penalty, abortion, limiting technology, political dialoging, weapons sales, families, children, and what he called the "harnessing of the spirit of enterprise" which is his way of saying socialism. He spoke of the US Civil War, the First World War, the Second World War, Martin Luther King, Abraham Lincoln, and Moses. But the loudest thing I heard is what he didn't say

He Probably Just Forgot

Having read the transcript of his speech (sermonette?) at the White House I can see that Mr. Pope covered a lot. He spoke of immigrants, families, a "tolerant and inclusive" society, religious liberty, air pollution, climate change, Martin Luther King, and social justice.

The one thing that the Vicar of Christ forgot to mention: Jesus. Not one peep. God was mentioned twice, once was when he mentioned "the blessings of peace and prosperity which God wills for all his children" (Can someone supply me with the bible verse for that?) and the other time was "God Bless America"

But the Bishop of Rome, Vicar of Jesus Christ, Successor of the Prince of the Apostles, Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church, Primate of Italy, Archbishop and Metropolitan of the Roman Province, Sovereign of the State of Vatican City, and the Servant of the Servants of God never mentioned Jesus once. However Obama mentioned Jesus, peripherally. Go figure

Shouldn't We All Be Red Letter Christians?

Emergent Monday: The Porpoise Driven Life

For all our smarts, people aren't very bright. Look at the popularity of shows like Ancient Aliens - these people are making a fortune off of the gullibility of their audience. These shows are based on little more than exaggerations, baseless speculation, and outright lies. You would think that an educated society would know better than to fall for the nonsense of the alien addicts. 

You would also think that a Christian society would know better than to fall for scam artists and false teachers (Romans 16:17). We're told to research the scriptures to make sure our teachers are being honest with us (Acts 17:10-11), we're warned to keep watch for those who would take advantage of our good hearts and naiveté (Matthew 7:15-23), and we're told to test everything to insure what we are being told is from God (1 John 4:1).

So why do our brothers and sisters fall for fads and scams and false teachers? Harold Camping, Jim Wallis, Tony Campolo, Rob Bell, Joel Osteen, Joyce Meyer, and so many more. They've even made up their own heretical version of the bible and the goats are using it in Christ's church! They're all ravenous wolves and people are practically jumping down their throats to be consumed.

Random Bits

"I walk through this sinful world as a 

pilgrim in a foreign country" - CH Spurgeon

Praise the Lord! A Texas pastor talked an armed Muslim terrorist wannabee out of murdering members of his flock.

Vladimir Putin is sending tanks and Russian soldiers into Syria to protect Christians from Muslims. Gog-Magog? I'm not quite sure how to digest this post, the author is a muslim Terrorist who has been convicted by the Holy Spirit of his sins and of the glory of Christ Jesus.

Here's an interesting US Federal Government program - pay Muslims not to kill people.

Remember those 200 christian school girls that were kidnapped in April 2014 by ISIS affiliate Boko Haram? Sadly, if they ever come back it will be with a machete and an AK-47

A new study by the Pew Research Center shows that 50% of all US adults that were raised Catholic have left that church.

When praying for our persecuted brothers and sisters keep the oppressed Christians of Orissa India in your prayers. Their faith grows stronger in the face continuous persecution even though the murders and rapes have (mostly) stopped.

Bible Study Fellowship Starts This Week!

I'm pretty excited, I've waited quite a while for a BSF class to start where I could participate and my little church was able to start one up, our first meeting is tonight. 

The Bible Study Fellowship is an international in-depth inter-denominational Bible study that helps people know God through His word. This year there will be 1,100 classes in 39 countries. 450,000 people are studying the same thing at the same time. Tonight my church's class starts the Book of Revelation, as will every other BSF class, be it men's classes, women's classes, and children's classes.

As I said, I'm excited. I was raised Catholic so the bible was never part of my life except to hear Monsignor Logal mumble through a portion of an epistle then expound on something completely unrelated. Finally after realizing Christ truly is my savior and Lord I've been reading it nearly non-stop since then. I've been in bible studies but now to be part of a world wide Bible study is mind blowing. Join us if you can!

Emergent Monday: Worshiping the Creation

According to a recent study by Baylor University, if you live in some place like Clovis New Mexico, Upham North Dakota, or Beloit Kansas you probably attend a church and worship God. If you live in someplace like West Palm Beach Florida, Estes Park Colorado, or Westport Washington you may instead spend your time outdoors worshiping God's creation. Upham and Beloit may have a few things going for them, possibly even Clovis too, but the staggering beauty of the rugged Rocky Mountains in Estes Park shouts of the grandeur of God and yes it does make people feel closer to God. Estes Park makes me feel 7,522 feet closer to God. 

Their study, “The Natural Environment as a Spiritual Resource: A Theory of Regional Variation in Religious Adherence”  (the full text can be found here) concludes that 

“Beautiful weather, mountains and waterfronts can serve as conduits to the sacred, just like traditional religious congregations,” - lead author Todd W. Ferguson, a doctoral candidate in sociology in Baylor’s College of Arts & Sciences. 

Their conclusion is that these natural amenities may attract tourists, new residents, and development to an area blessed with these resources, they also drive a wedge between the church that Jesus Christ built and man. In an article in the Coloradan, Larimer county in Colorado ranked high for natural amenities, but only had 435 congregation members per 1,000 people, Meanwhile sparsely populated Phillips County, in Northeast Colorado, ranked lower for natural amenities and had 673 church going per 1,000 people.

Random Bits

"I walk through this sinful world as a 

pilgrim in a foreign country" - CH Spurgeon

I have no words, other than utter sorrow.

I mentioned this week about the alignment of papist and protestant, was I being paranoid? You tell me.

The Dry Martyrdom of young Christians in America - tales of young Christians standing up for the truth in the face of a godless left.

Is an all-loving, all-forgiving, God just a myth? You betcha!

“If abortion is about women’s rights, then what were mine?” Abortion survivors testify at the House Judiciary Committee's investigation into Planned Parenthood.

Life Is Best - Wretched TV has produced a television series that will help people who support life for the unborn to present their beliefs - and back it up with scripture.

Navy Chaplin  Lt. Cmdr. Wes Modder will not be discharged from the Navy for doing his job. No word on how the lieutenant who provided false statements which started the witch hunt is being treated.

What’s the difference between evolutionary theory and an octopus? Well, one is a slippery, color-changing escape artist that can get out of any tough situation and the other is an aquatic invertebrate.

Works for me

Ecumenical Emergent Monday: The Purpose Driven Pope

The World Meeting of Families is a week-long international event of prayer, catechesis, and celebration that draws participants from around the globe. It seeks to strengthen the bonds between families and to witness to the crucial importance of marriage and the family to all of society.

I had to look up what a catechesis is, it turns out that when you remove all the extra syllables organized religions like to inject into a concept you find that a catechesis is training on a catechism, and a catechism is a tutorial of beliefs of a church written in Q&A form. Since the World Meeting of Families is a Roman Catholic organization, it is probably safe to say that the catechesis will not be based on the 95 Thesis. No, the Roman Catholic catechism is a summary of the official teachings of Catholic beliefs including creeds, sacraments, commandments, and prayers and not written in Q&A form, more in the form of a series of commandments.

And Rick Warren is going to be in the thick of it. Appearing live with Cardinal Seán Patrick O’Malley at 10:30 Am on September 25th, Rick Warren will be giving a keynote address  "The Joy of the Gospel of Life"

So what's a nice protestant minister doing at an all catholic get-together? Could it be making Pope Puppets? Bowling with the Bishops? Maybe the Swing with the Sisters dance party? Having gone to a strict Catholic school, that last one sounds explicitly terrifying, and yes, these are all real events planned for the World Meeting of Families. Each event has supporting references from the Roman Catholic catechism, not the bible. Surprised? Don't be.

Random Bits

"I walk through this sinful world as a 

pilgrim in a foreign country" - CH Spurgeon

"The United States seems to have lost its way in so many important moral pursuits that an alarming array of the values that originally made it great seem always a mere generation away from vanishing completely. If you allow those who worship God to be forsaken, only woe and ruin can await the nation"

This is a good example of how NOT to do it. As a Christian I can understand Kim's desire to not obey a morally improper law, but I have to point out to Kim that her ordering her deputy clerks to not issue licenses is overreach as putrid and foul as that of the Supreme Court that started this circus

New poll: Majority of Catholics agree with Mr. Pope on something he never said... wait, what?

Speaking of Mr. Pope - once upon a time (before a few days ago) murdering a baby was one sin that the Catholic church never wavered on, it used to be a Bad Thing... except now. Now abortions are totally cool according to Mr. Pope, but only during "Holy Year" Probably because Mr. Pope is running for environment czar of the whole world.

A great article on the link between rampant homosexuality and paganism

Without God

The Answer That Christians Don't Give

"Where was your God when 9/11 happened?"

"Where was your God when Adam Lanza shot up the Sandy Hook elementary school?"

"Where was your God when the Fukushima nuclear reactor melted down?"

If you haven't been assaulted with questions like this you're probably not a Christian, or if you are a Christian you may be hiding your light under a basket. Just the act of announcing to the world that you worship Christ Jesus as your true Lord tends to bring out the atheist assault troops. I say assault because atheists generally do not ask these questions and expect an answer, these are an attack on your faith.

They love to throw these questions at Christians for several reasons. One reason is to end an argument that they feel they are loosing, much in the same way that a staunch leftist will accuse you of being a racist (or in the case of Hillary Clinton who will accuse you of being a terrorist) just to shut down the conversation. Another reason is they are trying to sew doubt in your mind about God whom they hate. This is item #3 in Tom Challies' article "8 Ways Satan Convinces You To Question Your Salvation" (And if you think that by this I'm inferring that atheism is a tool of Satan, then you are very astute). However mostly these questions are just an attack. They're attacking you for believing in God, and they're attacking God because they hate him.

A lot of Christian answers I've seen to these attack questions are pretty weak at best. When asked why God allowed James Eagan Homes to shoot up a movie theater in Aurora CO, Christian author and apologist Lee Strobel answered "I don't know" How can a Christian author and apologist not know? He does go on to talk about sin being the cause but an atheist isn't going to understand that at all.