I am listening with keen interest to the pundits who are offering their personal perspectives on the devastating hurricanes which have ravaged our country in the past few weeks.

The most often repeated, and probably the most widely embraced perspective, is that these massive storms are the result of global warming. In researching this supposed phenomena, I have found widely divergent views presented from both sides of the argument. For those who seem to believe that rising ocean temperatures is a result of manmade greenhouse effects, the facts seem to clearly refute this particular explanation. The temperature of the ocean has actually risen over the past 135 years, with a deceleration of that rise over the past 50 years. So, it seems that the supposed greenhouse effect has actually produced the exact opposite of the data proposed by adherents to this theory.

Of course, the most outrageous, audacious perspective is that the blame rests on the American people for electing Donald Trump as president. I guess, based on that assumption, we would also have to say that the recent 8.1 magnitude earthquake in Mexico was also a result of the presidential election. And now, we are seeing satellite images of massive storms in other parts of the world. Are these, also, to be blamed on Trump’s victorious presidential run?

Might I make a suggestion? Admittedly, it is a rather simplistic suggestion. I would encourage you to research the data for yourself. Quit listening to those self-proclaimed experts who scream their views which are for the most part formed out of their personal political agendas. Look at historical records, and it will become clear very quickly that horrific storms, and other natural disasters, have occurred with regularity throughout recorded history. It doesn’t matter if the white house is occupied by a republican or a democrat. It doesn’t matter if the country is leaning to the left or to the right. As a matter of fact, these destructive storms were part of the landscape of the earth long before the United States existed.

So, what is the answer? Well, the answer is clearly and explicitly described in the Bible. The earth is actually under a curse due to the sinfulness of man. The Apostle Paul, in his correspondence with Rome, stated that the earth itself groans under the curse, awaiting the day of redemption (see Romans 8:18-25). The earth, which is under the direct sovereignty of God, has been subjected to His curse due to the sinfulness of mankind.

If you listen to the pundits, who proclaim for themselves some sort of expertise, then you will be persuaded one way or the other. If you listen to major media outlets, then you are undoubtedly persuaded of the “truth” of global warming. If, on the other hand, you listen to a more conservative news source, you will hear them shout loudly and clearly that there is no such thing as global warming. Who are we to believe?

Again, I would suggest that instead of listening to people who have given themselves over to the “herd mentality,” whichever herd they choose to follow, we carefully weigh out the facts. They are there for anyone to see.

And, most importantly of all, that we turn to the Bible. It is there that we have the most reliable information, with the authority for that information being God Himself. I suggest that you will not be steered by either herd, but rather by the Herdsman. He always knows best.

In order to protect myself from becoming overly cynical and critical of the human family, I choose to believe that most people are honest and decent. We certainly see this in times of tragedy and devastation as we have seen with the outpouring of love and compassion in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, and as we watch with keen interest the approach of Irma.

And yet, at the same time, we see the exact opposite. We see those who take advantage of the misfortune of others for their own benefit. We witness stealing and looting, we observe price-gouging and greed – indeed, right along-side those who will make sacrifices for the good of others, we see those who will take advantage of others in any way possible.

I realize that in light of the devastation we are witnessing through the destructive power of these storms what I am about to share is nothing. I would like to share a personal incident that illustrates that everyone is not honest and decent. I have suffered from lower back and hip problems for several years. In striving to find something to bring some semblance of relief, I began researching mattresses which were advertised to help ease the pain and discomfort. I finally found one that I thought would help, so I placed the order and eagerly awaited the arrival of this amazing (so they said) sleep aid.

The mattress was delivered last Friday. My wife and I were out of town when the delivery was made, so, someone helped themselves to our delivery. Someone pulled their vehicle into our driveway, loaded our high-dollar mattress, and drove off.

I don’t know who did this, and I will probably never know. They are probably enjoying the comfort of this mattress, and if they, like me, suffered from back and joint pain, they are probably enjoying the benefits of the design of this particular model.

If, by any chance whatsoever, the person who is now enjoying our mattress happens to come across this blog, there are a couple of things I would like to say to you. First, as a Christian who strives to live a God-honoring life, I cannot hold a grudge against you. The Bible teaches that once an individual places himself under the Lordship of Christ, he must love and forgive as Christ loves and forgives. So, I forgive you. I bear no ill-will toward you. Obviously, you have never received the saving grace of God, and you are only acting out of your sinful nature. Second, I pray for you. I pray that this act of stealing will weigh heavily on your conscience, and that God might use it as a source of conviction in your life that you are in desperate need of a Savior. And third, I trust that out of that conviction, you will be brought to the point of confession. Confession to God, and then, confession to me. I assure you that if you do come to me in a spirit of sincerity and brokenness, there will be no further action taken. You will be forgiven. As a matter of fact, as far as I am concerned, you are forgiven. But there is One far greater than me from whom you need forgiveness, and that is God Himself. I implore you to turn to him in faith and receive His grace, or you can choose to hold on to your sinfulness, and receive His judgment. The choice is yours.

Source: Does God Really Care – REALLY?

Our hearts go out to the people of Texas and Louisiana. The pictures continue to pour in of the horrific devastation Hurricane Harvey has unleashed. The destructive power of this storm will go on for days, even weeks and months, to come. For some, the waters will subside, and they will be able to go back to their homes and begin the process of cleaning and restoring. For others, there is no home to which they can return. They have lost everything.

How are we to understand this tragedy? More specifically, for the purpose of this blog, how does a Bible-believing Christian understand and explain such destruction? It brings to the fore the age old question of why God would allow such tragedy and destruction. It raises the question as to why God did not keep such an event from occurring. There are those who would argue that it proves one of two things: God is not powerful enough to have kept it from happening; or, if He is powerful enough, He is not a good God because He could have done something and yet refused to do it.

To answer the question, one must take a serious look at Scripture. It seems to me that we are guilty of being overly selective in choosing those passages of Scripture that fit our particular personal view of God. We tend to be drawn to those passages which relate to us the testimony of His immense love, compassion and mercy. But, we neglect to take into consideration those passages that speak of His justice and holiness. For a proper understanding of disasters such as Harvey, we need to make a quick review of the presence of evil in the world.

When God created man, He placed man in a perfect paradise, in which everything was indeed, perfect. There were no storms. According to Scripture, there was not even the slightest hint of anything that would deter man from enjoying every part of creation. It was all made by a loving God for the enjoyment of man, the crown of His creation. It was only after man decided to disobey God that the curse came upon the world. The apostle Paul says that now, the world itself groans under the curse of God, eagerly awaiting the day of redemption. Because of the curse of God that began in the Garden of Eden, the entire earth suffers, and will continue to suffer, until the time God intervenes and makes all things new again.

This is the reason for Harvey, and Katrina, and Floyd, and all the other storms which have ravaged our continent. And this doesn’t even take into consideration those which have battered the coasts of other continents. And this brings us back to where we started: is God all-good; is He all-powerful; could He have intervened and kept yet another devastating storm from causing such destruction? The answer to each of these questions is, yes.

All through the Old Testament, we have record of storms, and earthquakes, and pestilences of different kinds, which ravaged the land. To the people of Israel, these occurrences were viewed as being a direct work of God. They understood that the curse of God in the Garden was still in full force, and they acknowledged God’s activity in all events – whether they appeared to be good or bad from the human perspective.

Now, we must understand that individual storms, such as Harvey, or individual troubles, such as cancer, are all part and parcel of life lived under the curse. But this does not mean that God was upset with the people of Texas or Louisiana, but that Harvey is yet another example of the curse upon the earth. Yes, all such storms are a result of sin, but not necessarily of personal sin. As a matter of fact, Jesus Himself spoke of this very issue. There was an occasion (see Luke 13:1-5) in which He spoke of two separate events, and related them to the subject of our discussion. He told of Pilate mingling the blood of certain Galileans with blood sacrifices, and Jesus asked, “Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things?” Jesus then went on to cite another example: “Those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, to you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem?” Jesus’ point seems to be clear: it is not necessarily a result of personal sin that causes tragedy to strike, but rather to the principle of sin, which has brought God’s righteous judgment on the earth.

In the same chapter of Romans in which Paul speaks of the earth groaning under the curse, he later speaks of the amazing truth that God works in all things for the good of those who love Him. It doesn’t say that He makes everything good, but that all things can work for good. So, in all the destruction and devastation of Harvey, good will come. God will accomplish His work and the results will be amazing. But, we must look through the eyes of faith and belief, and not through the eyes of doubt and despair.

We now long for the day when all despair will be turned into joy and delight. God will bring that to pass in His appointed time. In the meantime, let’s be faithful, and trust that an all-good, all-powerful, all-loving Father in heaven always works in all things for good to those who love Him. And, it causes us to anticipate even more that coming day when all things will be made new! Even so, come Lord Jesus!

(The following is written with my daughter’s permission.)

I am so very proud of the young lady she has grown to be. She has set many personal goals, and has been committed to seeing those goals come to fruition. Her desire has been to work in law enforcement, and this goal is about to become reality. She set out to receive a degree in criminal justice, and, with the exception of one class she has to complete, this goal is now fulfilled.

Several years ago, she decided she wanted to play the drums, so her mother and I purchased her a set and she taught herself how to play. Using this talent she was part of a praise band in high school. They played at events such as See You at the Pole, as well as on campus Christian gatherings. She then decided she wanted to play the guitar, and again, she did this on her own. She has been serving as worship leader at our church for some time now, and it is all because of her tenacity in keeping her commitments.

She is now engaged to be married. As a matter of fact, her wedding date is only two weeks away (May 8, 2017). She and her fiancée originally planned the wedding for December, but because of her beginning her career with the police department, and because she would have no vacation time accrued for a honeymoon, I encouraged them to move the date up.

Now, to the point of this blog. Since they have announced their wedding date, and since the date was moved up significantly from the original date, my wife and I have had several individuals make the statement, “Well, she must be pregnant,” or “I guess you will be having another grandchild in about nine months,” or something to that effect.

Is it just an assumption in our society now that young adults who are in a serious relationship are sexually active? My daughter, at the age of 15, made a commitment to be sexually pure on her wedding day. She has remained true to that commitment. Those who are close to her know that she is a young lady with high standards of morality. She is not perfect, but she does strive for moral excellence.

I guess the thing that really saddens me most about this is that we have brought our standards of morality to such a low level. Those who strive to live by a higher standard are viewed as being abnormal. I am reminded of a statement made by the well-known preacher, Vance Havner: “The church is so subnormal that if it ever got back to the New Testament normal it would seem to people to be abnormal.” Why is it that young adults who commit to a life of sexual purity until their wedding night are thought to be abnormal? Because we have gotten so accustomed to the sub-normal!

Charity, I am so proud of you for so many things. Your mother and I want nothing but the best for you and Patrick. And the best, as we have always tried to teach you, is to follow the guidelines God has established for us in His Word. So, continue to strive for excellence according to His instructions, and you will always experience His rich blessings in your life, and in your marriage.

You’ve heard before, right? Of course you have. We all have. As a matter of fact, not only have we heard it, we have probably said it, or at least thought it, many times. It seems to be such a reasonable, rational question, doesn’t it? We look around the world, and we see the realities of violence, of disease, of famine, of graphic displays of bad things happening to good people in so many different ways. How are we to understand this? Is there an explanation for this haunting question? Can anyone offer an answer to this perplexity?

Well, my attempt at giving an answer would be to rephrase the question. I believe that asking why bad things happen to good people is asking the wrong question. The question should actually be: why do good things happen to bad people? I realize there are probably those reading this that would scream in disagreement with this rephrasing. And they would begin to offer their reasons for their extreme disagreement.

One example will suffice. Those who identify themselves as Christians would cite such examples as the barbarism of the adherents of radical Islam against those who they describe as infidels, which is an all-inclusive term identifying anyone who disagrees with the teachings of the Islamic religion. Just this past Sunday, as Christians were worshiping in Cairo, Egypt, they were savagely attacked by terrorists, with dozens killed and many more wounded. This is only one of many examples of bad things happening to good people, right? Well, actually, that’s wrong.

Let me begin my answer to this perplexing question by talking about the word, ‘good’. Like so many other words in our vocabulary, this word is an extremely relative term. I might go to a pulmonologist because I am experiencing breathing problems. X-rays might reveal that I have several dark spots in my lungs. Instantly, without the doctor having to say anything, I think cancer. My mind begins to run wild with all the horrific images I have seen of those who are fighting this terrible disease. However, upon further testing, I find that it is not cancer, but rather it is pneumonia. Wow! What wonderfully good news! But is it really? Well, yes, it is. In comparison, the news that I have pneumonia rather than cancer is very good news. Now, no, it is not good that I have pneumonia, but in comparison with cancer, it is, indeed good news.

I realize that’s probably not a convincing argument for many. So let me get right to the heart of my reasoning. Again, I suggest that ‘good’ is a relative term. I, personally, can look around and find persons with whom I can compare myself, and I can reach the conclusion that compared to them, I am pretty good. In my reasoning I might even think that I deserve better than them, because I am better than them. However, I can also quickly find multitudes that are better than me. So, in comparison, I am bad.

For Christians, with whom I identify myself, the source to which we turn for our understanding of all things, is the Bible. So, when we turn to this Book for an answer to this matter of goodness, and why bad things happen to good people, we find the solution to the confusion. Allow me to share a couple of quotes from God’s Word.

The Psalmist says, “There is none who does good. No, not one.” (Ps. 53:3) The Apostle Paul then quotes this same verse in Romans 3:12. And the definitive Biblical statement on the matter comes directly from the Lord Jesus Christ. He says, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but One, that is, God.” (Mark 10:18) These statements seem to be crystal clear: no one is good: no one! I might deem myself to be good in comparison to others, but in comparison to God, who could ever claim true goodness for himself? The answer is obvious: no one, not even one.

To see the only true picture of goodness, look to Jesus Christ. He is the perfect embodiment of pure goodness. And yet, he suffered horrific savagery. Did He deserve it? Absolutely not! And yet, this Person experienced the ultimate ‘bad’. Consider His followers, the original apostles. According to church history and church tradition, each of these men suffered extremely, most of them even executed for their ‘good’ behavior.

This coming Sunday we will celebrate the miracle of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the grave. But before the resurrection, He had to suffer the horror of crucifixion. The absolute ultimate example of bad things happening to a good Person. And to make sure that His followers would not be caught off guard by the bad things that were going to happen to them, He had taught His followers that they, too,  would have trouble in this life.

Therefore, He told His followers to expect bad things to happen to them. He promised that we would suffer. And our ultimate goal in life as Jesus followers is to allow Him to bring anything into our personal human experience that would result in His glory, knowing that the real glory for the true believer will not be experienced in this life, but in the life to come. So, take Jesus at His word: Yes, in this life we will suffer – bad things will happen to God’s people – but be of good courage, Jesus has overcome the world.

Let’s let the message of Easter remind us of how the very best has come to us as a result of the very worst happening to Jesus. And let’s gather in His house this Sunday, and every Sunday, to celebrate this most amazing event in all of human history.

A month ago I received the news that a church member and friend had passed away after a long, hard battle with chronic lung disease. The next week, I was informed that a life-long friend had passed away unexpectedly with a brain aneurysm. Earlier this week I learned of the passing of a wonderful saint of God who had reached the age of 83, and this morning I was called with the news that my wife’s first cousin had passed away at the age of 50. Death – cold, unrelenting, without partiality, taking some at extremely young ages while allowing others to live long, productive lives. However, no matter how long we live, we will all face this same reality. So far the statistics on death are pretty alarming: 100% of all persons born will eventually die. No exceptions. The rich can’t buy their way out of it. The powerful can’t escape it. The health enthusiast cannot hold it at bay. Everyone – each and every one – will die.

Morbid? Perhaps to some. However, it doesn’t have to be. The Bible is clear and direct on this subject. Death is a part of life. Please note that I did not say death is the end of life. It is not. It is a part of life. Scripture states matter-of-factly, “It is appointed to all men once to die, and after that comes judgment.” Let’s begin by talking about the first part of that verse – the appointment with death. A preacher from a previous generation made the statement that most people spend their lives trying NOT to think about death. We want to stay as far away from it as possible. When we are confronted with the cold, icy fingers of death, we try to get away from it as quickly as possible, to once again put it out of our minds until we are forced to face it once again. It is not usually a topic of social conversation. We all rather talk about life and living than to speak of death and dying. And yet, it is all around us, all the time. We all have an appointment with death.

And the second part of that verse leads us to believe that death is not the end. It states rather tersely, “After that [death] comes judgment.” So, there is something beyond death. It is but a part of this thing we call life. Life doesn’t end at the time of physical death. We might think of death as a doorway into the next phase of life. To view this from a Christian perspective, taking our instruction from the Bible, we understand that man was actually created to live forever. God placed His first human creation, Adam and Eve, in a perfect paradise in which they enjoyed the presence of God in that pristine garden. God gave them everything – EVERYTHING! They had the prospect of living in that perfect paradise forever. And yet, because they chose to forfeit the perfection of that fellowship with God, and the perfection of the place He had lovingly created for them, they were given the sentence of death. They were banned from the garden, forced to battle the forces of nature in a world that no longer enjoyed the blessings of God’s protection, and eventually experience physical death. And so, the sentence was passed on to all humanity.

But we must keep in mind that this was never God’s desired will for His human creation. His desire is for us to enjoy Him, and for Him to enjoy us, forever. So here is where we have to deal with that part of the verse that speaks of judgment beyond death. We are all accountable, and will give an account, to God. Some will give an account at what the Bible refers to as the Judgment Seat of Christ, and others at the Great White Throne Judgment of God. Those who have accepted God’s gracious gift of forgiveness will stand before Jesus Christ to be judged for those works we have done since receiving His precious gift of life. Those who have rejected that gift will stand before God at the White Throne Judgment to hear the pronouncement of their sentence of eternal death.

God’s grace is truly amazing, and His offer of grace is extended to everyone. Knowing that death is the doorway to the best part of life for the believer does not take away the sorrow and grief we experience when a loved one passes from this life, but it does give us hope that sees beyond that grave. At the time of death the spirit goes back to God, while the body goes back to the earth. The term, ‘passed away,’ is a very apt term, as the loved one has passed on to the next life, and we will be able to pass that way, too, if we have accepted God’s gracious offer of eternal life.

Have you accepted this offer of grace? It has been purchased through the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. In this act, He conquered death, hell and the grave. He did that for you. Truly amazing grace. It is by this grace that we are able to face the inevitability of our own impending death. It is by this grace that we can see beyond the brutality of death, and see, through the eyes of faith, the glorious life that is beyond that grave.

It is, as the Bible says, the reality for each of us. We will all die. I have been reminded of this truth once again in the past few weeks, and I will be reminded again in the future. But I have seen beyond – through the teachings of God’s word and through the eyes of faith, I have seen the reality of that which lies beyond the grave, and I can now rest assured that one day I, too, will pass that way. But it will only be a passing through. Are you prepared? If not, why not today, right now, this very moment. Why not entrust your eternal well-being into the hands of the only One who can assure you of the life you were meant to live. It only comes through Jesus Christ, and it is available to you and for you.

Our president has stirred a major controversy in our nation within the first week of his term of office. In an executive order on immigration, he has created a whirlwind of activity from both sides of the political spectrum. The executive order stops all refugee immigration for a period of 120 days. President Trump also stopped all persons from coming from the countries of Iraq, Iran, Libya, Syria, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen for the next 90 days. How are we to respond to this order? Or, more specifically for this article, how are Christians to respond?

I can only answer that question for me, so the following remarks are not representative of anyone else. I would like to begin by making a few observations.

First, President Trump is only doing what he said he would do. Even though he did not give specifics as to how it would be done, he had made clear in his run for the Republican presidential nomination that he would make changes which would affect immigration and refugee policy. So, no one should have been caught off guard when he quickly addressed this issue.

Second, I don’t think anyone would argue the point that immigration and refugee policy needed to be revisited and revamped. Far too many illegals are in this country, having never been properly vetted. This presents a plethora of problems for our nation. Many Americans are out of work because of so many illegals in the work force. This creates a grave danger to the citizens of the United States because it opens the door for terrorist cells to come in undetected.

Third, we need to recognize the fact that the tremendous influx of Muslims into this nation has created a very serious and dangerous plight for our nation. It is obvious that the population swell of those who practice the religion of Islam are not interested in becoming part of American culture. Rather, they desire to eventually replace American culture with the culture of Islam. They do not want to embrace the American way of life, but rather they want to  impose their way of life on us. Their ultimate desire is to make America another Islamic state.

When we review American history, and realize that our nation was founded on the principle of religious freedom, we understand that all adherents to all religions and religious beliefs and practices are welcome here. However, we also understand that this nation was built upon the principles of the Christian faith, and those principles would be the guiding force behind our government. Therefore, American culture was intended to be a Christian culture. All others are welcome, and wanted, with the understanding that when you come to make this nation your home, you come with full knowledge of our cultural beliefs and practices.

Bottom line, when you come to America you should come with the intent of being American. No, you don’t have to embrace the Christian religion for your personal faith choice. But, you don’t come with the expectation to force your culture and religious practices on the American people.

So, we do have a dilemma. As Christians we must understand that there are multitudes of people in other countries who are in dire need of aid. We need to understand that Jesus Himself ministered to the outcasts and unwanted of His day. But He also warned of those who would try to use any type of force to destroy the truth that He came to share. That truth is summed up in Jesus’ own words: “I am the way, the truth and the life; no man comes to the Father except through Me.” You see, Jesus Himself drew the line in the sand.

As Americans, we understand that we are the melting pot of the world. We understand that there are those who now call the United States home who have vastly different beliefs and practices than those of us who have been reared in this great country. And, we understand that they came here to make a better life for themselves. What we ask of them is to become one of us. Adopt the American dream. Adapt to the American way of life.

I, for one, applaud President Trump’s desire to keep America safe. He has an enormous weight of responsibility upon his shoulders. Let’s support him with our prayers, asking that God would grant him the wisdom to make the best decisions possible for everyone involved in this serious matter.

Would you do me the kindness of allowing me to make a self assertion, and then hear me out before you condemn me? The assertion is this: I am narrow-minded. Some would use different words, such as bigoted, prejudiced, exclusive, hateful, among others. But if you would, please hear me out before you make a judgment. After you have listened, then feel free to judge me as you wish.

There is an unquestionable, obvious divide in our country. This divide has been identified in several different ways: racial, political, ideological, philosophical, religious, etc. I would agree that you can certainly identify each of these divides in our contemporary culture.

However, I would suggest that none of these is the real reason for the division which is so clearly seen in our beloved country. I would suggest that each of these is caused by an underlying divide which, in essence, is the root of every divide listed above, as well as any other you might name. The divide to which I refer is a spiritual divide.

I believe that the contemporary generation has a very limited knowledge of this spiritual divide. The reason for that, for the most part, is that the younger generation has very little knowledge of the historical foundation upon which this great nation was established. It only takes a cursory reading of documents written by our founders that they envisioned this nation as one which would be guided by Christian principles. This is not to suggest that every person involved in the formation of the United States were committed Christians, because they were not. And, there has never been a time when every citizen of this nation was a professing believer in Jesus Christ. But, this nation was founded upon Christian principles, and the founders made clear that this nation would only succeed and survive as long as those principles were embraced and practiced.

The reason I stated in the preceding paragraph that the younger generation has no knowledge of the Christian influence on our founders is because of historical revisionism. Christianity has, for the most part, been removed from American history courses taught in American classrooms. As a matter of fact, in many history books, the influence of Christianity is put into a very negative light. It is presented as an overly oppressive influence that has had a negative impact on the development of our nation.

When Christian influence is removed from the public arena, it opens our culture up to all sort of belief and behavior which runs contrary to Biblical truth. We are now witnessing a cultural revolution because we no longer have the moorings of a strong Biblical foundation. Thus, we see the erosion of the family through the dissolution of the long recognized and accepted Biblical view of that entity. We are seeing the proliferation of alternate lifestyles because we have rejected the clear teachings of Scripture. We see over a million women march on our capitol, crying out for a woman’s right to do with her body what she wants, without any intervention of our government. I would suggest that we take government out of the equation, and get back to what the Bible says about the sanctity of human life. I believe and respect the right of women to make a personal choice, but the choice is not the end a pregnancy, the choice is to get pregnant. Once that choice has been made, then the only right choice is to give birth to that child, who is a gift from God.

I am not so naïve as to believe that we could ever go back to those days. We are, after all, the great melting pot of the world, and thus we have embraced every conceivable religion and philosophy of every people group which now calls the United States home. However, I would suggest that we could go back if we as a nation would once again embrace the beliefs of our founders, and recognize that we were founded and created to be that bastion of religious freedom which offers a place of refuge for anyone and everyone from anywhere and everywhere, but with the underlying premise that when they come to make this country their home, they understand that they can practice whatever religion or non-religion of their choice, but not to expect that we throw our Christian foundation out for the sake of embracing their beliefs and practices.

My heart yearns for the day when we would once again be recognized as a Christian nation, guided by Biblical principles, while allowing the freedom for everyone to practice their choice of religious belief as long as they followed the principles and practices of a nation whose Lord is the God of the Christian faith.

Now, am I bigoted, narrow-minded, exclusivistic? No more so than the hundreds of thousands who marched on the capitol last Saturday. We see things from diametrically opposite ends of the spectrum. How do we go about resolving the many issues that now face our nation? My suggestion is that we not look to our politicians, but to God, and allow His word to give the guidance we need to be the nation that honors Him.

Here we are again: Inauguration Day in the United States of America. At approximately noon on this day we will witness the transition of power from the preceding administration to the newly elected administration. We will hear PEOTUS Donald Trump take the oath of office to serve this great country as our Commander in Chief. He will place his hand on the Bible as he takes this oath of office, and so will begin the next chapter of American political history.

There is no question that the country will begin to move in a different direction from that of the past eight years. President elect Trump has made many promises of the changes he will implement as he leads our nation into the next four years. There are those who are in total agreement with the changes he has enumerated, and then there are those who adamantly oppose those changes. As I think back over the past eight years, I must admit that I was opposed to most of the changes implemented by the present administration. President Obama has led our nation toward a more socialist form of government, undermining, in my estimation, many of the precedents set by those who had served before him.

President elect Trump has made clear that he will lead in a totally different direction. We will see vastly different foreign policy implementation, as well as national policy. We will see a vastly different perspective on immigration, healthcare, and a litany of social issues that will move away from the liberal agenda set by the present administration.

How are we to respond? I can only speak for myself, but I would like to suggest that we give President Trump the opportunity to prove his leadership abilities. Even though I voted against Obama in both elections, I have tried my best to respect the fact that he had been elected by the people of the United States. There have been days when I was overwhelmed with disappointment because of decisions made by Obama and his administration. I have used my right as a citizen of this great country to share my beliefs and convictions. But through all the disagreements I have had with this administration, I continued to pray for God to give direction to this nation through those elected to serve.

I am asking now that we do the same for President Trump. Those who disagree with the changes he has promised to bring about, please respect the fact that the people of the United States have spoken through the electoral process, and he is now our duly elected president.

For those of us who identify ourselves as Christian, let me suggest that we pray consistently for our elected leaders. Pray that God would give them wisdom to make decisions which would lead this country back to the founding principles of those who were instrumental in developing our constitutional form of government. Pray that we would once again be a nation guided by principles gleaned from the Bible, the book that gave such insight and wisdom to those who formed this great nation. And pray that our government would never forget that, as past president Ronald Reagan stated, “If we ever forget that we are one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under.”