Indiana Straw Man

A "straw man" is defined as "a weak or imaginary argument or opponent that is set up to be easily defeated."

It seems like the best concept to introduce when attempting to address the hysteria surrounding Religious Freedom Restoration Act that was signed into law in Indiana last week.

Now, with Arkansas passing a similar law today, we need to take time to see through the absurdities and look at what this is really all about.

It's easy to get people to hate a law when it is characterized as "a license to discriminate" (particularly against homosexuals), and boy do people hate it.  Companies have already announced they are not coming to Indiana, the NCAA has expressed concern about its continued presence there, a liberal church denomination has decided to change the venue of its upcoming convention to a different state, and now the governor of New York is placing some sort of restriction on travel to Indiana for state employees.  #BoycottIndiana has been trending on Twitter for days.

How could anyone stand for such an odious law? 

The answer is that no one can and no one will, because the law as it is being portrayed is a myth.  It does not exist.  It is a straw man.

In a recent post on my personal blog, I expressed concern that the current political/news climate of our country is turning us into a nation of what the Bible calls fools.  In the Bible, fools are people who make no attempt at understanding but will angrily air their own opinions.  This post is an attempt to help us really understand what is going on here.

Victoria Osteen is Both Right and Horribly, Horribly Wrong

Maybe you've seen this video floating around the Internet in the last week.  Victoria Osteen is the wife of Joel Osteen, the megachurch pastor whose church meets in a former NBA arena and whose services are broadcast all over the world.  Why is this clip so viral?  Let's just say it's not because everyone wants to share her message...  so how should we react?



I say Victoria Osteen is right... and she is horribly, horribly wrong.

Thanksgiving Proclamations Through the Years

George Washington, 1789

WHEREAS it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favour; and Whereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me "to recommend to the people of the United States a DAY OF PUBLICK THANKSGIVING and PRAYER, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness:"

(rest of the proclamation and Abraham Lincoln's famous 1863 proclamation after the jump)

Ed Stetzer: The State of the Church in America (Hint: It's Not Dying)

I've said it for at least a decade: it's becoming culturally harder to be a Christian, so we will see fewer and fewer nominal Christians. This is a great article that cuts through panic and propaganda and reveals the truth to be that this is just what is happening in in America. 

Ultimately, in my opinion, this is good for the vibrancy of the church... and the number of true believers is even likely to grow.

Ed Stetzer: The State of the Church in America (Hint: It's Not Dying)

Proclamation of a National Fast Day - August 12, 1861

PROCLAMATION OF A NATIONAL FAST DAY - August 12, 1861

"Whereas a joint committee of both Houses of Congress has waited on the President of the United States, and requested him to 'recommend a day of public humiliation, prayer and fasting, to be observed by the people of the United States with religious solemnities, and the offering of fervant supplications to Almighty God'...

"It is fitting and becoming in all people, at all times, to acknowledge and revere the Supreme Government of God; to bow in humble submission to his chastisements; to confess and deplore their sins and transgressions in the full conviction that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; and to pray, with all fervancy and contrition, for the pardon of their past offences...

"When our own beloved Country, once, by the blessing of God, united, prosperous and happy, is now afflicted with faction and civil war; it is particularly fit for us to recognize the hand of God in this terrible visitation, and in sorrowful remembrance of our own faults and crimes as a nation and as individuals, to humble ourselves before Him, and to pray for His mercy. ...

"Therefore, I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States, do appoint the last Thursday in September next as a day of humiliation, prayer and fasting for all the people of the nation."

Guest Blog Post

Here is a link to a blog post by my friend Richard Foster, pastor of Grace Baptist Church in Camden.  His post really gets into much of what we have been talking about the last three weeks as we discussed sexuality, God's plan for marriage, and our responsibility to live as holy people in a profane world.

(It's unusually long for a blog post, so read it when you have some time).

Richard Foster: "Why So Much Confusion About Marriage?"

Holy Labor

NBC News: How the Smartphone Killed the 3-Day Weekend

God uses the Sabbath day to teach His people about work and trust. In our world, technology causes the demands of work (and everything else) to follow us everywhere, if we allow it. God's gift of the Sabbath has never been more relevant.
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"Buckets of Love" for Tornado Victims

 Liberty Baptist Association is asking us to help promote and collect "buckets of love" to send to tornado- stricken Oklahoma. People will need to purchase a 5 gallon bucket with a lid on it and fill it with the items listed.

 We will collect through Sunday and will ask the churches to bring the donated items to the following drop sites:

· FBC El Dorado (parking lot across from First Financial Bank);

· Central Baptist Church, Magnolia;

· Grace Baptist Church, Camden;

· Maple Avenue Baptist Church, Smackover.

 

Drop off times at the truck in El Dorado will be as follows:

· Thursday and Friday, May 23 & 24: 11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. and 5:00 - 7:00 p.m.

· Saturday and Sunday, May 25 & 26: 2:00 to 5:00 p.m.

· It will be best for individuals to leave donations at your church and the church can deliver them together on Sunday afternoon. 

Volunteers are needed to help us load at these times, with several volunteers available on Sunday afternoon.   

 

The items will need to be loaded on a tractor-trailer rig at FBC, El Dorado no later than 8:00 a.m. Monday morning. We will then go through Magnolia and load the items there, then go through Texarkana to deliver the items to Oklahoma.

These are the items that need to be placed in the buckets:

·  (1)     5 gallon bucket with lid

· (12)   16 oz bottles of water

· (2)     Flashlights with D size batteries

· (4)     Hand/shop towels

· (3)     Pairs of cotton work gloves

· (2)     Toilet paper rolls sealed in gallon Ziploc bags

· Other items you may wish to include and have room to put in the bucket, ie: snack bars, snack crackers, personal note from you assuring your prayers.

Monetary donations may be made as well. You can write a check to your church or to Liberty Baptist Association and indicate on it for: Oklahoma tornado relief. All funds will go directly to relief efforts and none to administrative costs.

The Knowledge of the Holy by A.W. Tozer

On Sunday evenings, we will be going through a study of the "attributes of God."  Most of the material for this study (and a good deal from the next sermon series on holiness) will be taken from the book Knowledge of the Holy by A.W. Tozer.  The book is available for free online in PDF form at this link.

I highly recommend this book.

St. Patrick's "Breastplate"

St Patrick’s Breastplate
I bind to myself today
The strong virtue of the Invocation of the Trinity:
I believe the Trinity in the Unity
The Creator of the Universe.

I bind to myself today
The virtue of the Incarnation of Christ with His Baptism,
The virtue of His crucifixion with His burial,
The virtue of His Resurrection with His Ascension,
The virtue of His coming on the Judgment Day.

I bind to myself today
The virtue of the love of seraphim,
In the obedience of angels,
In the hope of resurrection unto reward,
In prayers of Patriarchs,
In predictions of Prophets,
In preaching of Apostles,
In faith of Confessors,
In purity of holy Virgins,
In deeds of righteous men.

I bind to myself today
The power of Heaven,
The light of the sun,
The brightness of the moon,
The splendor of fire,
The flashing of lightning,
The swiftness of wind,
The depth of sea,
The stability of earth,
The compactness of rocks.
I bind to myself today
God's Power to guide me,
God's Might to uphold me,
God's Wisdom to teach me,
God's Eye to watch over me,
God's Ear to hear me,
God's Word to give me speech,
God's Hand to guide me,
God's Way to lie before me,
God's Shield to shelter me,
God's Host to secure me,
Against the snares of demons,
Against the seductions of vices,
Against the lusts of nature,
Against everyone who meditates injury to me,
Whether far or near,
Whether few or with many.

I invoke today all these virtues
Against every hostile merciless power
Which may assail my body and my soul,
Against the incantations of false prophets,
Against the black laws of heathenism,
Against the false laws of heresy,
Against the deceits of idolatry,
Against the spells of women, and smiths, and druids,
Against every knowledge that binds the soul of man.

Christ, protect me today
Against every poison, against burning,
Against drowning, against death-wound,
That I may receive abundant reward.

Christ with me, Christ before me,
Christ behind me, Christ within me,
Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ at my right, Christ at my left,
Christ in the fort, [i.e., at home]
Christ in the chariot seat, [i.e., traveling by land]
Christ in the poop. [i.e., traveling by water]

Christ in the heart of everyone who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks to me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.

I bind to myself today
The strong virtue of an invocation of the Trinity,
I believe the Trinity in the Unity
The Creator of the Universe.

hat-tip to Jason Craig

Arkansas Gets an "F" for Protecting Children from Trafficking

One of the least talked-about but most damaging problems in America (and the world) right now is the trafficking of people (usually women and children) for sexual purposes.  These children and women are moved from place to place against their will and used to sell sex, to no profit of their own.  They are modern-day slaves.  Many organizations are waking up to this enormous problem.

Last week, I challenged our church to take time to love our neighbors, redefining "neighbor" to anyone that God shows you has a need.  Today, I was asked via an email campaign by The Defenders movement to write our governor to encourage him to "raise the grade" in our state when it comes to laws that protect children.  I went to this site: http://raiseyourgrade.org to take action.

I was alarmed to find out that Arkansas gets a failing "F" grade for their anti-trafficking laws!  Arkansas is the only Southern state right now with an 'F' grade.  There is much to be done in Arkansas.  This problem is not just something that happens in the slums of Bangkok or something.  These things happen right in our towns in South Arkansas.

I encourage you to go to the website to learn more about this problem and to take action for yourself.  It is a good opportunity to put God's Word from last week's sermon into action!

Free Audiobook by Dietrich Bonhoeffer: God is in the Manger

Christianaudio has a free audiobook download every month. This month's offering is from one of my favorite theologians, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and is approriate as we think about the Incarnation. It's free! Check it out.
 

ABSC Says 'No' to 'Medical Marijuana'

In a resolution at the annual convention, messengers at the Arkansas Baptist State Convention urged Arkansas Baptists to vote 'No' on issue 5 on the ballot on Tuesday, a law which would would permit the use, sale and growth of marijuana for "medical" purposes.

Larry Page of the Arkansas Faith and Ethics council says that the law is not a grassroots effort to provide "compassionate care" but is instead a calculated effort to pave the way for the full legalization of marijuana funded by a national lobby group.

Read more to find out why Page says it is a "BAD LAW" based on "BAD SCIENCE" for "BAD MOTIVES."

Fall Back Saturday Night

Set your clocks back Saturday night before bed.  Enjoy tour extra hour of sleep and join us Sunday morning!

Religious Liberty

One of the ways to take action against the threats to our religious liberty that we spoke about Sunday is to sign the Manhattan Declaration here: www.manhattandeclaration.org. Also, read this article about how in Canada, Christians are already losing the freedom to make choices according to their convictions.

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New Free Audiobook: Hearing God

Hearing God is one of my favorite books I've ever read.  It gives a lot of great insight into what it means to listen to and hear God and follow his direction.  And now it's free to download in audiobook form from ChristianAudio.com.

Dallas Willard is one of my favorite authors.  I've really liked everything I've read from him.  This is a really good opportunity to get a book that will impact your life for free.  Check it out!

Merry Christmas

BCS Thoughts

Well, the bowl matchups are out, and while I was a little disappointed TCU didn't climb up the two spots in the standings that they needed to get a BCS bid, they probably didn't deserve a bid this year. The championship match-up of two SEC schools is the topic of converstation, after Oklahoma State made a big case for themselves in the final game of the season by blowing out Oklahoma 44-10.  They were edged out in the rankings by Alabama, putting two SEC West teams in the championship and creating a rematch of the 9-6 overtime game from November 5th. How should it have turned out?

An Interesting Forum for the Presidential Candidates

Here's a video of an event called "Thanksgiving Family Forum" featuring the major Republican contenders (except for Mitt Romney).  It's not a debate, and they seldom talk about their disagreements or even specific policy but rather talk about personal beliefs, philosophy of government, and events that shaped their lives. 

I'm not all that politically active, so this was an interesting introduction for me to a few of the candidates with whom I was less familiar.  There is certainly an element where they are to the crowd (it took place in a large church) by mentioning and emphasizing their Christian beliefs repeatedly.  But some of the statements impressed me, because they are statements that could easily be twisted by those who fear religious people and used against them should they make it to the general election.

More than that, though, I enjoyed seeing these candidates with their guard down, not speaking at a podium in the tones of an orator but speaking conversationally about very personal issues, with several candidates getting choked up or wiping away tears.  (There is one story in particular from Rick Santorum that will make anyone cry.)

It's long, but I enjoyed it, and it gives us some insight into who these candidates are as people.

Are you watching the Hogs this weekend?

Halftime at the Hogs' game against Auburn on Saturday there will be a special presentation honoring a former Razorback who never played a down for the Hogs.  His story is moving.  Reading this story helps us to understand how difficult change can be, but that, over time, change is possible.

Read his story here from Yahoo! Sports.