Calling All Readers!

I stumbled upon a great blog for those of you who are big readers of Christian fiction and non-fiction.  “A Peek at My Bookshelf” reviews Christian books and is committed to telling readers when a book is biblically sound and when it is not.  As an avid reader myself, I appreciate this valuable resource.  Check out her current contest, where you can win books and gift certificates to fun places!

Motherhood IV: Hurry Up!

Yesterday, my son and I were walking home from the park.  It was a beautiful morning–no more than 80 degrees–with a clear blue sky and a light breeze.  I had nothing life-threatening to get to when I got home. . .nothing more than laundry, a little bit of house cleaning, and a lunch to throw in the oven for the two of us.  I was having such a special time with a precious boy, and yet I still used the words “Hurry up” when he paused to lean down and study the broken, uneven sidewalk.

I hate those words.  I cringe every time I say them because I know that the cliche is true: “These years pass so quickly, and then your children are grown.”  So, why do we say them?  If I look at the times when I have said “Hurry up,” it is usually when my son is exploring the world and taking it in, and why do I want him to hurry through that?  For myself, I’ve been shown that this is purely my selfish desires and personal agenda rearing it’s ugly head through what could (and should) be a beautiful moment to remember and cherish.

Now, I know how kids can dally.  They can take an hour to do something that takes us adults 5 minutes.  They are not the most skilled at time management, nor are they the most productive.  Life, for them, is certainly not about a checklist of things to be completed.  But you know what I’ve realized?

They are happier than 99% of the adults out there.

Maybe they are on to something. 

Maybe life isn’t about rushing about and hurrying through.  Maybe it isn’t about productivity and finding more time and checklists.  Maybe it’s about love, joy, peace, and the Author of all of those:  God.  Maybe it’s about slowing down and studying the shape of the sidewalk or the way a roly-poly rolls.  Maybe if I wasn’t often looking for ways to “Hurry up,” then when I heard my son asking, “What does God do in heaven?”, I would be able to answer him more thoroughly (and have the potential for a life-changing conversation with him).  After all, aren’t those the sort of things that life is all about?

My challenge to myself is to allow God to shut my mouth and quiet my mind when I’m tempted to say, “Hurry up.”  I have a feeling that my Heavenly Father, the One who loves me and wants me to see all the beautiful and wonderful things He has in store for me and my family, is just trying to get me to slow down enough to see them.  When it comes right down to it, I can think of very little involving my son that I actually want to hurry through.

Does Truth Matter?

I came across an excellent speech by Rick Santorum, given in 1999 at The Heritage Foundation’s Conference on Religion and Political Leadership.  It is well worth the read.  It’s source is The Heritage Foundation (website below), where the speech can be read in full.

The Necessity of Truth by Rick Santorum

 “Ever since Alexis de Tocqueville, foreign observers have consistently noted that the United States is one of the most religious countries on the face of the planet. Year after year, Gallup polls reveal that nearly 90 percent of all Americans consider religion either “very important” or “fairly important”–and even those who don’t regard themselves as conventionally religious generally profess to believe in a Supreme Being. On any given Sunday, more Americans are to be found in church than the total number of people who attend professional sports events over the course of an entire year. Although Friedrich Nietzsche famously argued, a century ago, that “God is dead,” here in the United States He appears to be alive and thriving.

Yet, at the same time that Americans confound secularist predictions about God’s imminent demise, we are increasingly reluctant to make critical moral distinctions, when necessary. Whether things are true or false, right or wrong, good or evil doesn’t seem to concern us very much any more–so long as we are all pleasant to each another and do nothing to call into question our collective self-esteem. Social critic Michael Novak writes, “I don’t know if `judgmentaphobic’ is a word, but it ought to be. Where conscience used to raise an eyebrow at our slips and falls, sunny non-judgmentalism winks and slaps us on the back.”

In my remarks to you this afternoon, I will examine the paradox of a people that strives to be both religious and non-judgmental. How is it possible, I wonder, to believe in the existence of God yet refuse to express outrage when His moral code is flouted? To have faith in God, but to reject moral absolutes? How is it possible that there exists so little space in the public square for expressions of “faith” and the standards that follow from belief in a transcendent God? How is it possible to be a theist and a relativist, a traditionalist and a post-modernist, a believer and a “judgmentaphobe”–all at the same time? How is it possible to mantain liberty while banishing from the public square any reference to a transcendent moral code?

My answer to these questions is that it simply is not possible. In the view of our country’s Founding Fathers and our greatest moral teachers, religion–and the truths to which religion points us–is essential to the success of the American experiment. The Founders believed that God is the source of truth–and that it is through religion that the light of self-evident truth will guide Americans in their lives, order their national affairs, and protect their liberty. If we are to resolve the problems that currently threaten to overwhelm us, I am convinced that we first must recover this traditional understanding of religion as the way in which we determine commonly agreed-on moral precepts–an understanding that has clearly been present throughout most of our history but has somehow grown obscure today–and make room in the public square for this discussion.

To illustrate the traditional American understanding of religion, I’ll begin with the Pennsylvania experience, not merely because I harbor a certain partiality toward that great commonwealth but also because, as Paul Johnson rightly argues in his splendid History of the American People, “Quaker Pennsylvania was the key state in American history.” And the principal reason for Pennsylvania’s importance is the charter of government that William Penn gave his fellow Quakers in 1682, making religious freedom the law of the land. In his famous Frame of Government, Penn pledged that

all citizens who believed in “One Almighty and Eternal God…shall in no way be molested or prejudiced for their religious persuasion or practice in matters of faith and worship, nor shall they be compelled at any time to frequent or maintain any religious worship, place or ministry whatever.”

This charter of religious liberty made Pennsylvania a magnet for victims of religious persecution of every sort, with the result that, in short order, it simultaneously became, in Johnson’s words,

the center of Quaker influence throughout the world, a stronghold of Presbyterianism, the headquarters in America of the Baptists, an Anglican center, a place where many important German religious sects–Moravians, Mennonites, Lutherans, German Reformed–established their headquarters, and yet a place where large numbers of Catholics and Jews were tolerated.

Given the stereotypes about religion that prevail in America today, one might have expected that a state throbbing with so much religious enthusiasm would rapidly become a haven for bigotry and radical fundamentalism–a kind of 17th century Tehran. In fact, Pennsylvania became a center of liberty and learning, the seat of the American Philosophical Society and the home of some of America’s finest colleges and universities–most of them church-founded. And it is from within Pennsylvania that we were given both the symbol of America’s struggle for independence–the Liberty Bell with its exhortation from Leviticus to “proclaim liberty throughout the land”–and the classic statement of the American Creed, the Declaration of Independence.

How is it possible that a state filled with so much religion yielded such a bountiful harvest of freedom, tolerance, and reason? The answer to this question lies in Penn’s charter of religious liberty. With no faith enjoying state support, the fires of religious persecution, which burned so fiercely in Europe, were quickly and decisively extinguished; and with each faith thrown back on its own resources, a free competition of religious beliefs ensued, with every church and sect striving to put its best foot forward.

Pennsylvania’s successful experiment in religious disestablishment was eventually emulated by all the other states of the Union, and has come to typify America’s approach to religion. But it’s important to remember exactly what Penn–and all those who followed his example–actually set out to do, and what they did not set out to do. They did seek to sever all connections between a particular church and the coercive power of the state. They did not seek to exclude religion and expressions of faith from the public square and from public debate. In contrast, our country’s founders acknowledged that religion, and the moral code it reveals for us, is necessary for the success of the American Experiment.

First, religion protects us from tyranny.

The impossibility of government’s being neutral in the matter of religion and irreligion, morality and immorality, was clear to the Founders. As historian Allen C. Guelzo observes,

The American revolutionaries were convinced that the root problem in their great quarrel over self-rule with England was corruption. They eventually concluded that the whole British system of monarchy was built on corruption, and that it was held together by bribery and self-interest.

To prevent the new United States from being similarly corrupted over time, its institutions had to be founded on the solid rock of “self-evident truths.”

Consider the famous words of the Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident”: “Truths”–not “opinions,” not “premises,” not “assumptions,” not “collective myths,” not “accepted rules of procedure,” not “value-judgments,” not “working hypotheses”–but “truths.” And what made them truths was that they accorded with what the Declaration calls the “laws of nature and of nature’s God.” To the Founders, these God-given truths–that “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights”–are no more open to discussion or debate than the laws of gravity. They are simply there, part of the created order. And because they are divinely sanctioned, it followed that even if a wicked and depraved majority tried to subvert them in the name of “democracy,” the moral minority would be obliged to resist the majority’s wishes in the name of moral truth. Or, as Abraham Lincoln put it in 1858 during one of his debates with Stephen A. Douglas,

The real issue in this controversy–the one pressing on every mind–is the sentiment on the part of one class that looks upon the institution of slavery as a wrong…. They look upon it as being a moral, social and political wrong; and…they insist that it should as far as may be, be treated as a wrong.

Second, liberty depends on religion.

The Founders hoped that the majority would never become so misled as to reject the existence of the “laws of nature and of nature’s God.” For that reason, they constantly stressed the centrality of a divinely based moral code in instilling Americans with a sense of virtue. Listen to how George Washington made the case for religion and morality in his Farewell Address of 1796:

Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports…. And let us with caution indulge the supposition, that morality can be maintained without religion. Whatever may be conceded to the influence of refined education on minds of peculiar structure; reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle. ‘Tis substantially true, that virtue or morality is a necessary spring of popular government.

But Washington was not the only one who stressed the importance of religion to the well-being of the republic. The Founders regarded the newly created United States as an “experiment in ordered liberty.” Experiments, by definition, can fail–indeed, most of them do. For the American experiment not to fail, it was necessary for the power of government to remain limited, for only under a regime of limited government could liberty flourish. Yet how could government power remain limited if people regularly lied and stole, cheated and killed one another? If only to maintain minimal standards of order, sooner or later a lack of virtue among the people would force the state to expand its reach. Only among a virtuous people could limited government–and liberty–flourish. As Edmund Burke put it in 1774, two years before the Declaration of Independence was proclaimed,

Men qualify for freedom in exact proportion to their disposition to put moral chains on their own appetites. Society cannot exist unless a controlling power is put somewhere on will and appetite, and the less of it there is within, the more of it there must be without.

Hence the Founders’ almost obsessive insistence on the role of religion in keeping Americans virtuous–and therefore more free.”

The rest of this excellent article can be found at:  http://www.heritage.org/Research/Religion/HL643.cfm

 

Freedom for All, If. . .

It seems to me (and I’ve only been closely watching the political and cultural climate for about 10 years now) that this is an incredibly hostile atmosphere for freedom to survive in long-term.  It is under attack from every angle, and I’m not taking about our War on Terror (oh, excuse me, our Overseas Contingency Operations).  I’ve noticed that at an alarming rate, our freedoms as conservative, Christian, traditional men, women and children are in grave danger.  There is a growing group out there (that includes the mainstream media) that wants to believe that the U.S. Constitution does not protect us “right-wing extremists.”  They are doing everything in their power (never underestimate that power, by the way) to selectively strip away freedom from a majority.  In their world, freedom is only “for all” if. . .

. . .If you are not a born-again Christian (unless you are willing to keep your mouth shut about it)

. . .If you are not a conservative 

. . .If you are not trying to keep marriage traditionally defined, between one man and one woman

. . .If you are not Carrie Prejean, for example

. . .If you are not for smaller government and less taxes

. . .If you didn’t attend a Tax Day Tea Party

. . .If tolerance is your god

. . .If you aren’t fighting to overturn Roe v. Wade

. . .If the DNC or MoveOn.org received contributions from you in the last 8 years

. . .If you hate George W. Bush more than any other individual on this earth

. . .If you are a pacifist

. . .If you are in adamant denial of the existence of absolute truth

. . .If you are ok with radical, liberal, activist judges legislating from the bench

. . .If you want to stay ignorant about what the Founding Fathers actually set in motion for this country

. . .If you boycott the Fox News Channel

But I don’t fit the mold on any of those things, therefore, my rights and freedoms are in jeopardy.  The Bible says that many scary things will happen in the end times, and although I have no idea if the “end times” are 10 years away or 1,000, I do know that this world is not my home (Ephesians 3:20) and I rejoice in my eternal destination.  At the same time, I know that while I am here, I can gently and lovingly stand on the truth of the Word of God and fight to preserve what the Founding Fathers (and our Heavenly Father) intended this great nation to be, and I can do it without apology.  And I have a feeling that those who feel their freedoms are in jeopardy, those who don’t fit the above either, are starting to rise up and fight again with confidence and conviction, and it’s a beautiful thing to see.

Noteworthy News. . .Even If It Infuriates You

This is one of those days where I already have a headache, but then when I look in the news, I find these infuriating stories:

NIH Spends $178,000 to Study Why Prostitutes in Thailand Have High HIV Risk

My retirement money is being spent to study transgendered prostitutes in Thailand who, because of their Buddhist faith, are particularly unphased by the possibility of contracting HIV (which they do). . .and the government wants to spend your tax dollars to figure out why.

Red Hot Lies About Global Warming (”How Global Warming Alarmists Use Threats, Fraud, and Deception to Keep You Misinformed”)

More and more well-researched people are coming forward and telling the public that global warming is not only a myth and hoax, but a strategic effort on the part of many to expand government and take more of your money (and in some cases, pay these global warming alarmist quite well).

From Happiness to Holiness in Marriages

Why are marriages failing at an alarming rate?  And why are fewer people deciding to get married at all, choosing instead to co-habitate?  According to MarriageToday.org, more than 50% of marriages are now ending in divorce, and “for the first time in our nation’s history, married-couple households are in the minority.” 

I won’t paint all divorces under one broad brush, but I will bet that one significant contributing factor is that we have allowed our culture to teach us to seek self-centered happiness over God-centered holiness.  Actually, we have had this “flesh” with us since sin was introduced in the Garden of Eden, and the culture reinforces it daily.  Whether we divorce because of infidelity (one spouse seeking their happiness over their marital commitment), unmet expectations (we feel that we have a “right” to our happiness), or we’ve fallen out of love, our culture has taught us that these are all valid reasons and that divorce need not be a big deal anymore.  In fact, I’ve even heard psychologists say that it is better for the kids if the parents divorce rather than live in conflict.  I’m not so sure that I agree (although I am not talking about cases where there is blatant, unrepentant sexual or physical abuse of the spouse or children–those are incredibly valid reasons to, at the least, legally separate).

I’m not saying that marriage is easy.  And I’m not passing judgment on those who have been through a divorce.  I’m simply looking at the culture that we live in and watching as those secular and anti-biblical values and worldviews penetrate our marriages, Christian or otherwise, all over the country and world.  I’ve weathered difficult times in my marriage – times that others may have looked in on us and encouraged us to divorce.  That’s what society would have said to us.  But what if marriage was God’s avenue to make us more like Him, rather than perfectly happy (as defined by us)?  As I celebrate my anniversary with my husband this week, I am reminded of one of the most profound marriage books I have ever read called Sacred Marriage by Gary Thomas.  In this book, Thomas makes a very compelling case that “God designed marriage to make us HOLY more than to make us HAPPY.”  He says, “If I’m married only for my happiness, and my happiness wanes for whatever reason, one little spark will burn the entire forest of my relationship.” 

When I think of the first year of my own marriage when my happiness hinged on what my husband did or didn’t do, and likewise for him, that inevitably led to problems and conflicts, which unfortunately would lead to occasional uses of the word “divorce.”  I realized that it really can be just that easy to arrive at that word.  But when I focus on what God wants to refine in me through my marriage, it becomes not about me, but about God.  And we found that marriage has made us confront our own selfishness and pride more than any other relationship we have ever encountered, or probably ever will. 

Thomas confirms this throughout the book, as you can see through these chapter subtitles:

• Marital analogies teach us truths about God
• Marriage teaches us to love
• Marriage teaches us to respect others
• Good marriage can foster good prayer
• How marriage exposes our sin
• Building the spiritual discipline of perseverance
• Embracing difficulty in order to build character
• Marriage teaches us to forgive
• Marriage can build in us a servant’s heart
• Marriage can make us more aware of God’s presence
• Marriage can develop our spiritual calling, mission, and purpose

When we allow marriage to teach us these things, we will find that we are focusing more on becoming holy as Christ is holy, and not as much on making our spouse conform to our image.  Easier said than done, yes, but if we are spending our life contributing to an eternal reward rather than earthly happiness, then isn’t it worth it?

I highly recommend Sacred Marriage by Gary Thomas.

A Moment of Real Pride and Hope

As I’ve been watching the news the last couple of days, I’ve seen something wonderful — something that makes me so proud and also hopeful that conservatism can rise again in America. 

I saw seniors at Notre Dame preparing to peacefully protest President Obama’s visit there this weekend.  Many pro-life students are disappointed over the school’s decision to invite a radically pro-choice president to speak as a guest of honor.

I saw Miss California, Carrie Prejean, standing up in defense of traditional marriage. . .and allowed to keep her crown. 

I saw that Chad Farnan, a student at Capistrano Valley High School, is suing the school district over his European history professor’s daily anti-Christian tirades and indoctrination of his students.  Chad Farnan is standing on truth, no matter the opposition.

I see groups like Family Research Council being a loud voice around the world (and frequently in the media) as they stand up for faith, family and freedom.  Others such as the National Right to Life, Randy Alcorn’s Eternal Perspective’s Ministries and Watchman Fellowship are groups that make me proud to be fighting for the causes I believe in, no matter the popularity – causes that I believe to be straight out of the Bible.

In these days where it seems like our culture, morality and freedoms are falling prisoner to political correctness, tolerance and an “anything-goes” mentality, I am encouraged to see people standing up for truth.  Following the Lord is not about winning a popularity contest, it is about living our lives grounded in the Word of God, regardless of the world.

“If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first.  If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own.  As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world.  That is why the world hates you” (John 15:18-19).

Does President Obama Hate America?

Gerald Warner is a writer for the Telegraph.co.uk and has written an excellent blog that would be well worth reading here (although I do not condone any name calling of the President, no matter how angry we get–it is the substance of what Mr. Warner says to which I call attention).

Does President Obama hate America?  He is a man who sat in Reverend Wright’s church for 20 years as that man spewed hatred of America without apology.  This is the same man whose wife was caught verbalizing some anti-American sentiment during the campaign.  This is the same man who went on what Sean Hannity terms an “Apology Tour” (seemed to apologize overseas for America’s weaknesses and failures), and did this within months of taking the oath of office to “faithfully execute the Office of President” and “defend the constitution”.  This is the same man who is driving America into the ground with record-breaking budget deficits, his hard-core agenda to push universal healthcare and policies that are unraveling the traditional family at every turn.

It is this hatred for America and all that she has stood for, in my opinion, coupled with Obama’s lust for power and acceptance at any cost, that will, at the very least, be the beginning of the end.

Motherhood III: Mother’s Day

This weekend, we will celebrate Mother’s Day.  God has asked us to honor our mothers, and in a moment, I would like to say a word about my own.  But we do not just celebrate women who are raising children, we celebrate women who have touched the life of a younger child, given them words of wisdom or a “You-can-do-it!”  We celebrate those women who, when faced with the devastating circumstances of infertility, pour their lives into children at their church or in their neighborhood.  We celebrate those mothers who have chosen life for their child, rather than abortion, and then asked another family to raise him or her, a family who could give them everything.  We celebrate those women who make a difference in children, by teaching them ABC’s, the Word of God, or how to run free with joy in the afternoon sun. 

My prayer today is threefold:  For those of you who are mothers, may you know that your value is incalculable, your job appreciated, and your affects on your children’s lives is eternal.  For those of you who have recently lost your mothers or are estranged, please know that you are not alone and there are people praying for you today.  I am praying for you today.  For those of you who are not biological or adoptive mothers, for whatever reason, and today is painful for you, also know that the “God of all comfort” is with you today and prayers are being lifted up for you as well.  I have no doubt that you’ve touched the life of a young person or two who has looked up to you or learned from you, and to me, that’s the beauty of being a mother, so today, we celebrate you as well.

I want to say a public “Thank You” to my own mother, who (along with my father) introduced me to my Savior nearly 30 years ago.  She then modeled what it means to walk in the ways of the Lord, with her heart fixed on Him and transfixed by His love.  I shudder to think of what my life could have been like if Jesus wasn’t a central part of it.  So, thank you Mom.

To my mother-in-law, I say “Thank You” for raising a man with compassion for others and who has such a capacity to love without condition.  He is a wonderful and affectionate father to your grandson, and I know he learned much of that from being loved by you, so thank you.

I’ve received the following email a couple of times over the years.  I do not know the author, but it is priceless.  I share it with you today.  Happy Mother’s Day!

The Invisible Mother

“It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I’m on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I’m thinking, ‘Can’t you see I’m on the phone?’

Obviously not. No one can see if I’m on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all. I’m invisible.

Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more: Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this? Some days I’m not a pair of hands; I’m not even a human being. I’m a clock to ask, ‘What time is it?’ I’m a satellite guide to answer, ‘What number is the Disney Channel?’ I’m a car to order, ‘Right around 5:30, please.’

I was certain that these weren’t the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude - but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again. She’s going, she’s going . . . she’s gone!

One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England. Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not to compare and felt sorry for myself as I looked down at my out-of-style dress; it was the only thing I could find that was clean. My unwashed hair was pulled up in a banana clip, and I was afraid I could actually smell peanut butter in it. I was feeling pretty pathetic when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package and said, ‘I brought you this.’

It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe. I wasn’t exactly sure why she’d given it to me until I read her inscription: ‘To Charlotte, with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees.’

In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work: No one can say who built the great cathedrals - we have no record of their names. These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished. They made great sacrifices and expected no credit. The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything.

A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird; on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, ‘Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof? No one will ever see it.’

And the workman replied, ‘Because God sees.’

I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, ‘I see you, Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does. No act of kindness you’ve done, no sequin you’ve sewn on, no cupcake you’ve baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can’t see right now what it will become.’

At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride. I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder, as one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on. The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to sacrifice to that degree.

When I really think about it, I don’t want my son to tell the friend he’s bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, ‘My mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table.’ That would mean I’d built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his friend, to add, ‘You’re gonna love it there.’

As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we’re doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.”

For a great laugh, watch and listen as comedian Anita Renfroe sings to the William Tell Overture all the things a mom would say in a 24 hour period:

onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outbound/article/www.youtube.com');">watch?v=GE6EkAvV4-Y&feature=PlayList&p=8383EBE6E1B2769F&index=0

National Day of Prayer

Family Research Council is a ministry that I respect and support.  They are an organization that has been defending faith, family and freedom since 1983.  Last night, I got my daily email from them, and this was what FRC’s president, Tony Perkins, had to say about today’s National Day of Prayer.

“[Today] marks the National Day of Prayer (NDP), which was first proclaimed by President Dwight Eisenhower in 1952.  Since that time Presidents have routinely proclaimed the first Thursday of May as a National Day of Prayer (NDP).  It has been reported that the Obama White House will issue an official NDP proclamation, but the text has yet to be released.  A presidential spokesman did make it clear that there would be no NDP event at the White House.  That, of course, is a break with the tradition of the Bush administration, which hosted an annual NDP event at the White House. 

Should we be surprised? Concerned? No and yes. While there is a long history of Presidents praying and calling the nation to prayer (dating all the way back to George Washington), a de-emphasis on prayer in this administration should not come as a surprise. What can we expect of an administration whose policies cheapen human life, increase dependence upon government and threaten religious freedoms? But just because there is no official White House event shouldn’t lessen [today's] significance. To the contrary! First, this should help us realize we need to pray even harder because leaders who do not seek God’s leading are hampered in their ability to lead others. Secondly, we must recognize that God’s call for people to humble themselves and pray (2 Chron 7:14) is not a call aimed at political leaders and those with great power and influence, but rather it’s a call to the Church.

I want to encourage each of you to participate in a NDP gathering near you.  Even if you can’t attend an event on Thursday, please make it a priority to pray for the Church, for the country, and for our nation’s leaders.”

To find a NDP location near you or to link to the source of this quote, go to Family Research Council (www.frc.org).

To read a wonderful prayer by Beth Moore, click here.

To see a list of things the New Testament tells us to pray for, visit Randy Alcorn’s blog here. 

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