Comfort

Psalm 23
“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.”

Our prayers this night are for the families, soldiers, friends and coworkers of the men and women who were gunned down at Ft. Hood today. This tragedy is unspeakable and devastating. Please pray for them and the dangerous work that our soldiers perform.

Prayer: Father, thank You for today and for Your Son Jesus Christ. You saw what happened today at Ft. Hood. Our hearts are saddened and hurt by this unnecessary act of violence. Help those who suffer this night the great loss of unexpected death and wounding. Heal them and strengthen them. We pray also for those who committed these senseless acts that they may come to You and seek forgiveness from those whom they harmed. In Jesus’ Name we pray. AMEN.

Read the bill!!!!!

This morning as the Congressional Republicans displayed their healthcare proposals the hue and cry from the Demokrats is that the Republicans didn’t want to participate in the healthcare discussions or even attempt to be bipartisan. The truth is that bipartisan to Demokrats is writing legislation the way the Demokrats want it written without any input from Republicans. Bipartisan means falling into lock-step behind CINCO (Comrade-in-Chief Obama) slobbering after his every socialist dream and following blindly into economic and national death.

Read the Republican Bill: http://www.gopleader.gov/UploadedFiles/06-17-09_House__GOP_Solutions__Group__Outline.pdf

Then you decide where you want to put your tax dollars.

Living Water

John 4:7-15, “A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” (His disciples had gone to the city to buy food.) The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?” (Jews do not share things in common with Samaritans.) Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” The woman said to him, “Sir, you have no bucket, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? Are you greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us the well, and with his sons and his flocks drank from it?” Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.” The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I may never be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water.”

This experience at the well has long been a touchstone of faith for me. It is a reminder of how Jesus sees each of us; not stained, nor damaged or beyond hope. Jesus takes this woman’s heart into His loving hands and tenderly offers her eternal waters, living waters, in the Kingdom of Heaven. There is no issue of nationality or race it is about God’s love through Him to her. It is the same for each one of us. Jesus speaks to us individually through this encounter. It is our choice to live into Jesus Christ’s offering of living water.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for this day and for Your Son Jesus Christ whose offering of living water is made to us as well. We will drink from that eternal promise. In Jesus’ Name we pray. Amen.

Elections

There is much ado over the recent elections held in New Jersey, Virginia and the 23rd Congressional District in New York. Everyone seems to have an opinion. The truth of the actions that we saw occurring in these three places is voters – we the people making their vote heard. Congress and the Whitehouse need to sit up and take notice that they should NOT pass any legislation without this country first getting to read what is being passed. Pay attention to what your Representative and Senators do with regard to any piece of legislation. If it does not reduce the deficit or reduce spending then vote her or him out of office. If one dime is added to the debt – vote them out of office. If they lie, cheat or steal – vote them out of office. If they fail to keep their campaign promises – vote them out of office. I don’t care which political stripe marks their garments – vote them out!

I have taken it upon myself to write a letter to each Representative and Senator with my opinion about healthcare, cap-and-trade, bailouts, the war on terror, and increased taxes. 535 times $.44 equals $235.40 in postage. LET THEM KNOW HOW YOU THINK AND FEEL ABOUT WHAT THEY ARE TRYING TO DO!!!

Pray for our Leaders

1 Timothy 2:1-7, “The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know. Pray especially for rulers and their governments to rule well so we can be quietly about our business of living simply, in humble contemplation. This is the way our Savior God wants us to live. He wants not only us but everyone saved, you know, everyone to get to know the truth we’ve learned: that there’s one God and only one, and one Priest-Mediator between God and us—Jesus, who offered himself in exchange for everyone held captive by sin, to set them all free. Eventually the news is going to get out. This and this only has been my appointed work: getting this news to those who have never heard of God, and explaining how it works by simple faith and plain truth.” From the Message.

“Pray especially for rulers and their governments to rule well so we can be quietly about our business of living simply, in humble contemplation.” I confess that this current government of the United States disturbs me greatly. I pray for our nation and our leaders every day. Our nation is an experiment in freedom and liberty that has been challenged every year of its existence. The challenge is immense today and our leaders need to turn back to God.

Prayer: Father thank You for today the day that wasn’t promised. Thank You for salvation through Jesus Christ for we know that whatever happens on earth that our eternal home is with You. Help our leaders choose Your path, Your Son and Your Way. In Jesus’ Name we pray. AMEN!

It's not a Christmas ornament it's offensive

The peace symbol used in the 1960s as a protest against the war in Vietnam is repugnant to me. I saw it plastered all over the grimy clothing of hippies, on protest signs and eventually scrawled on the helmet covers of fighting men in Vietnam. The symbol meant anything and everything but peace. In Nam it meant I could expect that whoever was wearing that symbol was using drugs, i.e. marijuana and/or heroin. Certainly not everyone who wore that symbol used drugs but the preponderance of those who did wear the symbol used drugs. The symbol also meant contempt for the men and women who served in the military. I was in the military and felt that contempt on more than one occasion. Yesterday a catalog arrived in our home from the Pottery Barn. Emblazoned on the front cover as a Christmas tree ornament is a peace symbol all covered in glitter and set against a balsam backdrop. I am truly offended to see that show up on a Christmas tree as an ornament.

Plea for Help in Evil Times

Psalm 12,
“Help, O LORD, for there is no longer anyone who is godly; the faithful have disappeared from humankind.
They utter lies to each other; with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.
May the LORD cut off all flattering lips, the tongue that makes great boasts, those who say, “With our tongues we will prevail; our lips are our own—who is our master?”
“Because the poor are despoiled, because the needy groan, I will now rise up,” says the LORD; “I will place them in the safety for which they long.”
The promises of the LORD are promises that are pure, silver refined in a furnace on the ground, purified seven times.
You, O LORD, will protect us; you will guard us from this generation forever.
On every side the wicked prowl, as vileness is exalted among humankind.”

Prayer: Father thank you for today. Thank you for redemption and salvation through Jesus Christ. Bring us back to a time when we are Godly and Christ-like. In Jesus Name we pray. Amen.