Complete in Thee: world and national events

Showing posts with label world and national events. Show all posts

Saturday, September 19, 2009

Thoughts on Government

I decided to start my Government for this year, even though I am not finished with Economics. It is definitely feeding my interest that I have in Government/American history (though present politics can stress me if I let it. ;-) ) I am always intrigued when I read about the Christian foundations of America, and my heart goes out to those people who have suffered under the governments that have forsaken God. How terrible it is that our nation is heading in the same direction as many of those other nations which were so swiftly, so suddenly overtaken by the monsters of Socialism and Communism. Allow me to share a couple random thoughts from my Government (American Government in Christian Perspective, Second Edition; A Beka Book).

"Victor Hugo has left to us a bit of interesting history concerning Napoleon and the Battle of Waterloo. On the morning of the battle, the little dictator stood gazing upon the field of b

attle as he described to his commanding officer his strategy for that day's campaign:
'We will put the infantry here, the cavalry there, the artillery there. At the end of the day, England will be at the feet of France and Wellington will be prisoner of Napoleon.'
After a pause, the commanding officer said, 'But we must not forget that man proposes but God disposes.'
With arrogant pride the little dictator stretched his body to full height and replied, 'I want you to understand, sir, that Napoleon proposes and Napoleon disposes.'
Hugo went on to write,
'From that moment Waterloo was lost, for God sent rain and hail so that the troops of Napoleon could not maneuver as he had planned, and on the night of battle it was Napoleon who was prisoner of Wellington, and France was at the feet of England.'" (-Lehman Strauss, page 16)

"The appeal of socialism is to human weakness-- the desire to avoid responsibility and the craving for material gain. It offers security as a substitute for opportunity, and the price is freedom." (-Charles B. Shuman, page 22)

"Is there hope for the future? Because of the satanic character of Communism, there is ultimately no help or hope in merely human resources. Communism is an ideology, a religion, a philosophy of life. It is useless to oppose Communism with something as nebulous as 'Americanism' or 'the free enterprise system'. As Alexander Solzhenitsyn has eloquently and forcefully said, Communism arose because 'men have forgotten God.' The battle against Communism is basically spiritual and will be won only by spiritual resources-- belief in the reality of God and the Christian perspective of life.

The antidote for world Communism is world evangelism. It is to take our Lord's words seriously when He commissioned His followers to disciple the nations. Only a life of vigorous, vital, vibrant Christianity in the life of a nation can overcome Communism from within and without." (page 33)

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

WHO's in charge??

Yesterday the country was all at the polls, making the choice between two men of very different convictions and character-- or perhaps between one with convictions and character, and one without. This morning many people are rejoicing. Many people are looking forward to seeing their financial problems fixed. They are excited at such a historical event having taken place.

Others are hardly rejoicing. Some are probably in dumb shock. Some are realizing that this is a new page in history and it doesn't look too good. While driving through town today, we even saw a man putting his flag at half-mast. Some, however, are realizing, and I hope I am one of these, that Barack Obama is not and will not be on the throne-- now or ever. It may seem so, but it is not. Only One Person is truly on the throne, and He's very reliable, because He has been at this business for 6,000 years-- and even before then. Economic and political changes do not change Him in the least, and corrupt governments and tight financial circumstances do not hinder Him in any way from being just as powerful as He ever was. This ruler-- this King-- is Jehovah, God Almighty. He is not very popular, and would not have won the vote if He was considered a presidential candidate. But that doesn't hinder Him. He is in control. He continues to orchestrate the courses of nature and the hearts and lives of men.

God's declaration of His will and government (the Bible) declares that "the king's heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will." In the first chapter of Job, we also read about satan coming before God and asking permission to torment Job. God gave him permission, but also set a bound that he could not pass over, and used all of it for His [God's] own glory. Likewise, whoever the president, or any other leader is, they cannot go beyond the bounds God has set for them, and all they do is only part of God's plan to bring Himself glory and further His kingdom.

Part of me dreads the future. And yet at the same time I know I have a God who is far above anything else and He is in control. Why worry? It doesn't do any good. Rather, we must all choose to go forth in the eternal principles and live in the unchangeable promises that He founded ages ago, in far tighter circumstances than we find ourselves in now.

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In the 6th century, B.C., Israel was taken into captivity by Bablyon. This is the message God sent them in that difficult time:

"Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness...
For I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee."

Isaiah 41:10,13

This promise is true for all today who have believed on and obey the Messiah and therefore become children of Abraham as well.

Monday, November 3, 2008

Election Day Tomorrow

The Lord has been teaching me so much lately, and I have so much to blog. It's hard to decide what to write about first!! That's good though; I love when I have an overabundance of teaching from God's Word. Plus, I need to catch up from last week. ;-) So here goes:

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Here's an exerpt from my journal today:

"Election Day is... guess what? Tomorrow! ... Let righteousness reign. Revive your people, Lord, and save souls. Give "we the people", as well as our leaders, wisdom, and most importantly, salvation through Your Son Jesus Christ. And, above all, prepare us and give us grace for whatever comes. What a beautiful thought that, no matter who gets the presidency, You will always be the same, and I will still be the same in You. Politics and economics cannot come in between You and me. Like Vika said in her post that I read yesterday, nothing, absolutely nothing, can seperate us from Your love, and if we truly believe that, we won't have room in our hearts for worry or fear...

... Whatever You alow I know You'll give grace to bear it and You won't be even one step farther from us than before. How wonderful to serve a constant, unchangeable God! You are the same now as You were when You made Your covenant with Abraham; You are the same now as when You parted the Red Sea and gave the children of Israel manna each day as they needed it; You are the same now as when You stopped the lions' mouths and brought Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego through the fiery furnace untouched; You are the same now as when You raised Jesus, Your Son, from the grave and when You changed the heart of a radical persecutor named Saul and made him one of Your greatest apostles. Almighty, Unchangeable God!"

Friday, October 3, 2008

Joyful News!

I usually don't like email forwards, but this is one that really ministered to my heart, especially as yesterday I suddenly realized the Election Day is only one month away and was beginning to worry myself over it. Take time to let these truths sink in (BTW, I edited it slightly):

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TOP 10 PREDICTIONS NO MATTER WHO WINS THE ELECTION:

The Bible will still have all the answers.
Prayer will still work.
The Holy Spirit will still move.
God will still dwell in the hearts of His people.
There will still be spiritual teaching and healing.
There will still be singing of praise to God.
God will still pour out blessings upon His people.
There will still be room at the Cross.
Jesus will still love you.
Jesus will still save the lost.

ISN'T IT GREAT TO KNOW WHO IS REALLY IN CONTROL?!

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"But the LORD is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him" (Habbakuk 2:20).

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PRAYER REQUESTS

"Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints" (Ephesians 6:18)

PLEASE PRAY...

* That I would draw nearer to God every day and never allow my relationship to become stagnant ritual; particularly that I would grow in the area of submission, patience, 1 Corinthians 13 love, and wholehearted devotion

* That I might have wisdom as I edit "The Marquis' Daughter"; that the Lord would bless and work through it; and that I might find just the right publisher for it.

* That I would submit to the Lord's work in my life, whatever it may be; that I would take each opportunity He brings me (even the seemingly hard ones) to draw closer to Him and point others to Him

*That our Etsy shop might be successful and that it would be a means by which we can glorify God and share the Gospel

Ephesians 2:1-10

And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience-- among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ--by grace you have been saved-- and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

"The heart set to do the Father's will need never fear defeat. His promises of guidance may be fully counted upon. Does it make sense to believe that the Shepherd would care less about getting His sheep where He wants them to go than they care about getting there?"

"God is God. Because He is God, He is worthy of my trust and obedience. I will find rest nowhere but in His holy will, a will that is unspeakably beyond my largest notions of what He is up to."

"If God, like a father, denies us what we want now it is in order to give us some far better thing later on. The will of God, we can rest assured, is invariably a better thing."

"Obedience to God's will is the secret of spiritual knowledge and insight. It is not willingness to know, but willingness to DO (obey) God's will that brings certainty."

"Victory over all the circumstances of life comes not by might, nor by power, but by a practical confidence in God and by allowing His Spirit to dwell in our hearts and control our actions and emotions. Learn in the days of ease and comfort, to think in terms of the prayer that follows, so that when the days of hardship come you will be fully prepared and equipped to meet them."

"And shall I pray, Oh, change Thy will, my Father,
Until it be according unto mine?
Ah no, Lord, no, that never could be, rather
I pray Thee, Blend my human will with Thine."

"A crucified life cannot be self-assertive. It cannot protect itself. It cannot be startled into resentful words. The cup that is full of sweet water cannot spill bitter-tasting drops, however sharply it is knocked."

"And as we rest our hearts upon what we know (the certainty of the ultimate triumph of good), leaving what we do not know to the Love that has led us all our life long, the peace of God enters into us and abides. And then we see our light."

[A Practicing Christian]...it means that every single act and feeling, every experience, whether pleasant or unpleasant, must be referred to God. It means looking at everything as something that comes from Him, and always looking to Him and asking His will first, and saying, "How would he wish me to deal with this?"

Christ says: "Give me all. I don't want so much of your time and so much of your money and so much of your work. I want you."

"I was not born to be free. I was born to adore and to obey."

"What is saving but taking us out of the dark into the light? There is no salvation but to know God and grow like Him."

"I will not try to convince you of anything about God. I cannot. You must know Him. I only tell you I believe in Him with all my heart. You must ask Him to explain Himself to you, and not take it for granted that He has done you a wrong because He has done what you do not like. Whether you seek Him or not, He will do you justice. But He cannot explain Himself unless you seek Him."

"Sometimes a thunderbolt will shoot from a clear sky; and sometimes into the life of a peaceful individual, without warning of gathered storm, something terrible will fall. And from that moment everything is changed. That life is no more what it was. Better it ought to be, worse it may be. The result depends on the life itself and it's response to the invading storm of trouble. Forever after, it's spiritual weather is altered. But for the one who believes in God, such rending and frightful catastrophies never come but where they are turned around for good in his own life and in other lives he touches."