Words have power—even individual words. No one knows this better than news outlets and politicians, among others. I recently read a short news report on the voter bills that are being proposed around the country. In this particular story, the word “restrictive” was used 9 times. It helped paint the bills in clearly negative terms….
Category: Politics
Somebody Threw a Glass Slipper at Cinderella
Update 3/26/21: apparently, Ms. Jhaveri has been fired from USA Today. In other words, the who called for ORU to be canceled…was canceled. ————- I have never been a supporter of Oral Roberts Ministries. However, the policies being roundly condemned by the writer of this USA Today article only apply to students who choose to…
Against the “The Equality Act”
The so-called “Equality Act” is one of the worst pieces of legislation proposed in my lifetime and must be defeated. Rather than provide equality, it assures equality among women (equal opportunities, especially in sports) will never be achieved and will make the world a much more dangerous place for all biological women. In this video,…
Worldview Voting
As a pastor, I have always tried to be apolitical. I don’t talk about who I vote for and have never encouraged voting for or against politicians. I think my job is to speak to the world from a biblical worldview perspective rather than a partisan one. I still do. I don’t like politics as…
Standing For Life
Quick proud dad moment: I am so thankful to be the dad to two boys who love Jesus and desire to honor Him in all they do in the different stages of life they are in. Today, I’m extremely proud of my son Jacob’s bold stance in the fight for life as a college freshman….
More Thoughts on Refugees
A couple of weeks ago, I wrote some initial thoughts on the refugee crisis. I mentioned that there is so much we cannot know in order to determine whether or not we should support taking in refugees. After listening to endless officials and pundits over the last several weeks analyze and argue their views, I still don’t…
Quick Thoughts on Refugees
As hard as it is, I am trying to look at the current refugee crisis carefully, thoughfully, morally and ethically. As I think about this, I have to realize there are so many unknowns behind the scenes that make it impossible for me, with all certainty, to take a “right” position. I find I have…
Kirsten Powers: “Crush Planned Parenthood” Article
Kudos to Kirsten Powers, an evangelical, independent-minded Democrat, for having the courage and conviction to stand against the political pressure of conformity and speak the truth about a glaring, yet legal, atrocity in our world today. For so long, we have turned a blind eye to the systematic, legal and profitable killing of unborn children now…
Culture Warrior
I hate that term. I hate the concept, too. “Culture Wars.” Who came up with that anyway? I mean, I understand the thinking: “Our Country is going to hell and it’s our responsibility as Christians to stand up and prevent it!” I think that’s what bothers me the most. Is that really our calling? Is…
They’re Not YOUR Kids
Not sure if you saw this or not, but a recent commercial on MSNBC has one of its hosts claiming that we have to get past the notion that our kids are actually “our” kids. Instead, they belong to the community. I don’t disagree with her basic idea of the importance of looking after each…
A Pivotal Day: Gay Marriage Before the Supreme Court
Today is a big day in our Country. The United States Supreme Court will begin hearing arguments regarding California’s “Prop 8” ban on same-sex marriage. The suit that will be heard by the Court is being brought by one lesbian and one gay couple, challenging the voter-approved ban. As I’ve listened to the rhetoric on…
On Presidential Politics: The Aftermath
It was once told to me that if you have a pastor you don’t like, don’t waste time complaining. Instead, pray for the one you have that he’ll become the one you want. This will prevent you from dishonoring Christ, leaving too early or causing problems within the church. I think that is very good…
On Presidential Politics and the Evangelical Dilemma
There seems to be a great deal of confusion rising regarding the upcoming elections among Evangelical Christians. On the one hand, there is a candidate who claims to be a Christian, yet whose policies fly in the face of that claim. On the other is a candidate whose policies largely agree with traditional orthodox Christianity…
A Deal-Breaker
As a pastor, I don’t officially endorse candidates. I am a registered Independent who makes every attempt to take a biblical approach to issues related to politics. Though I try to refrain from talking about specific candidates and believe it is wrong to turn a church pulpit into a political “stump”, it is my responsibility…
Accountability Is Not Hate
There is a new article in Newsday today that reports on a group of illegal aliens who are protesting being called illegal aliens: A small group of immigrants gathered in Woodbury Monday to protest the use of the word “illegal” to describe those who have entered the United States without documentation. “By saying illegal, they’re…
My Take On the Chick-fil-A Flap
I suppose I should start out with a disclaimer so some of you don’t turn me off before reading any further: I do not support the spirit behind the image posted to the right. I really don’t think it’s helpful (clever as it may be). However, it highlights an important point that deserves serious attention:…
Difficulty Facing A World of Contradictions
In my recent blog post related to the contradictory stand on the value of human life in American culture, I claimed that, according to the law of the land, a fetus is deemed human according to the desire of the mother. If the mother wanted to give birth to the child and the child is…
To Stand
For anyone who has been at The Gathering for any length of time, you know that I am regularly on the proverbial soap box regarding the absolute nature of Truth regardless of how normative the current culture speaks to the contrary. There is right and there is wrong. Right doesn’t become wrong over time nor…
First Baptist Church of…the Republic?
Over at the White Horse Inn, there is a good article on the Church and politics called, No Nation Under God, that I’ve included in my Google Shared Items Page and I encourage you to read it in its entirety. In this article, Pastor Jason Stellman discusses the way in which the political process has…
The Beginning?
I don’t tend to be an alarmist and very seldom talk politics as a pastor, but I believe this transcends mere politics. I have talked to the folks at The Gathering for some time about the day that persecution of Christ-followers would be on the increase in America in some form or another. Well, it…
On The Election
For the last two weeks at church, we’ve been discussing both the will of God and the Kingdom of God. This week we have a new president. Some are happy about that while others, well, not so much. The question I want to ask is, “Did the will of God occur?” I think the way you answer that will affect what your attitude will be in light of the results. There are basically two possibilities: [read more]