The Fools Who Follow Him

Godfather Politics has a great article about wealth "redistribution".  The ending quote translated from a Czech paper is the kicker.

“The danger to America is not Barack Obama but a citizenry capable of entrusting a man like him with the Presidency. It will be far easier to limit and undo the follies of an Obama presidency than to restore the necessary common sense and good judgment to a depraved electorate willing to have such a man for their president. The problem is much deeper and far more serious than Mr. Obama, who is a mere symptom of what ails America. Blaming the prince of fools should not blind anyone to the vast confederacy of fools that made him their prince. The Republic can survive a Barack Obama, who is, after all, merely a fool. It is less likely to survive a multitude of fools, such as those who made him their President.” — Translated from Czech Republic Newspaper Prager Zeitung (April 28, 2010.)

The lack of common sense and good judgement found in the people of this nation is due in large part to the failure of the church to educate and train people in cultural issues such as government, law, and economics.  My own church, for example, refuses to take a stand on any cultural issue that is controversial.  Now, mind you, they don't mind taking stands on theological issues that are (at least in our denomination) controversial.  But cultural issues. . . well that's another story.  Those might make us seem divisive or legalistic or something else unpleasant.  And so of the 2-3,000 voting age people at our church, I am sure that hundreds if not a thousand of them voted for Pres. Obama.  In general the church has no concept of the different authorities God has given the various governments (self, family, church, civil).  For example, they will site that we are to take care of the poor.  But this is a function of the family first (the poor within your family), then the church, then the community, and not the civil government.  Many Christians have the skewed view that if its a good idea (marriage counseling, healthy food, saving money for retirement) that the civil government should do it.  But this leads to a massive, corrupt, godless government.  And then the church moans, "If only the government would do something!"

So I applaud Prager Zeitung for their insight and wonder if it is the year they spent under communism that allows them to have this insight and state is so well.  And will we have to spend some time under an equally tyrannical regime before we can realize the same and begin the change staring with ourselves (how educated are you on the biblical perspective of law, government, and economics), our families (what are you teaching your kids), and our churches (if you are in a place of influence are you using it to spread the truth).

Sixty Acres and a Bride

I was privelidged to receive a copy of Sixty Acres and a Bride by Regina Jennings from Bethany House Publishers.  The fabric of this story is as finely embroidered as the clothes the main heroine (Rosa) wears.  Set in post Civil War south Texas, there enough historical flare to keep the story interesting.  You will find the story reminiscent of the Biblical account of Ruth and Naomi, but with enough twists and turns to keep it interesting.  This book is about love and loss, finding one's place in a new community, sticking with friends and family in need, and trusting in the Lord.  I really enjoyed reading it and hope you will give this debut novel a try.

What Grows from Your Heart? makes it to the front page of Etsy!

And I already got a commitment to buy from a lady in Australia, but I had to update the shipping for that country. An exciting way to start a Saturday!

Something to Celebrate

There is a great post from FRC about Texas cutting off the flow of money to Planned Parenthood and how clinics are closing left and right.  I think this is in part because prayer in TX has increased against abortion especially via 40 Days for Life.  Despite the bleakness out there, there are still things to celebrate and praise God for!

The Captive Heart by Dale Cramer

I received the book The Captive Heart by Dale Cramer from Bethany House for review.  I really enjoyed the first book in this series (The daughters of Caleb Bender) and was super excited to get to review this second book.  It is a series based on true events in which an Amish community moves to Mexico (Paradise Valley) so that their children will not be forced to attend an "English" school.

The Captive Heart picks up right where Paradise Valley  leaves off.  It is just as well written and gives intriguing insight into the lives of the Amish and the Mexicans living around them.  The love stories seem honest and realistic.  The story is thrilling at times and the historical facts seem well researched.

Yet I couldn't love this book as much as the first one.  The whole complete pacifist nature of the Amish tradition began to grate on my nerves after a while.  I don't fault them for standing up for what they believe.  They are a testament of faith even when they are the only ones going in that direction.  I just don't see their point of view in the Bible so it is hard for me to read it without getting annoyed.  Somehow this was not such a major factor in the first book so I didn't mind so much.  And let's face it, self-defending Amish would have been out of place.  I think Mr. Cramer did a good job sticking with the Amish values.  It is just tiring to me to read.

In the end, I give the book 4 stars and still look forward to reading the third one.

Kuwaiti Prince Publically Converts to Christianity

HT to Godfather Politics

One of the Kuwaiti princes has converted to Christianity according to Iranian TV.  The source is an audio recording of the man saying that he approves of its distribution and knows that he will likely face death but believes that he will then see Jesus.  Of course, another Kuwaiti prince denies that the man named is really a prince.  I tend to believe the Iranians.  Let's all pray for this prince and his bold actions.

Complete Lunacy of the EPA

Godfather Politics has an interesting article about the EPA.    It is worth reading the whole thing.  Here is a little quote from it.

With no real supply of cellulosic biofuel to be had, the fuel companies were unable to comply with the EISA requirements, the Environmental Protection Agency is moving forward with their plans to impose fines on the fuel companies for failing to meet the guidelines.  And if the fuel companies are unable to get their hands on 8.65 million gallons of cellulosic biofuel this year to meet the requirements, they’ll face even stiffer fines.

I suppose the EPA would be glad if "Big Oil" just stopped selling their non-compliant fuel.  Of course, those of us that rely on fuel to get to our jobs would be SOL.  But the planet would be "safe".  (Insert eye roll here.)  The whole thing is so ludicrous that I can't even put it into words.