#2091 (9/30) PRO-LIFE SAT: "What if the NFL Players Were Protesting Abortion Instead?"

"WHAT IF THE NFL PLAYERS WERE PROTESTING ABORTION INSTEAD?" - Steven Ertelt, Sep. 27, 2017 | http://www.lifenews.com/2017/09/27/what-if-the-nfl-players-were-protesting-abortion-instead/ AS I SEE IT: Now here is a suggestion about a protest by NFL players I could support (though only if it didn't happen during the playing of the national anthem). Couldn't happen, you say? Well, the guy in the picture below is not a random selection for this article. The player in the picture actually did take a stand against abortion many years ago. I don' recall whether it got much media attention but as  left-leaning as the mainstream press is, I am certain the reporting was more negative than positive. Please note the excerpt from the article noted after this one. Question: I wonder why his teammates and the owner did't stand "united" with HIM when he did this? Oh yeah, what he did was "politically incorrect." - Stan]

NFL players across the country are refusing to stand and put their hand on their heart during the national anthem. Their decision is causing national and international debate over what is  appropriate when it comes to political protests.

Many Americans support the Free Speech rights of the NFL players to protest but a large percentage of Americans believe protesting the national anthem is not appropriate and it’s disrespectful to the country. They believe the football players should choose another venue to protest what they perceive as racism. Because the NFL football players are protesting racism — the mainstream media and many on the left are hailing them as Heroes.

But what if they were protesting for a cause that is not seen as quite so cool in the media limelight. What if they were protesting for people who Hollywood Elites look down upon? What if they were refusing to stand and place their hands on their hearts and respect to their country to back a class of people who faced the ultimate discrimination?

What if they were sitting down or kneeling to protest abortion?

That is a question one opinion columnist has asked ["Dan Fagan: If NFL players protested abortion or police killings, what would happen?" -  by Dan Fagan, Sep. 26, 2017; http://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/opinion/article_a954aab8-a23b-11e7-b14f-075f28a21add.html :
     "The media are so excited that some NFL players had the courage to disrespect our nation’s flag this past Sunday, protesting racism in America. The coverage locally and nationally could not be more sympathetic. Ten New Orleans Saints sat during the national anthem, and Coach Sean Payton proclaimed he was proud of every one of them."
     "Question: What would have happened if some players wore a patch Sunday, with a baby on it, protesting abortion? Do you think the media would be doing backflips to praise them? How about the Saints organization or the NFL? Would we have seen the same support as we did from elites for the national anthem protesters? Would Coach Payton express his pride for his men for standing up for the unborn? We will never know because the NFL would have shut down a pro-life protest before it could begin."
    "Remember the tragic police massacre in Dallas last year? Cowboys owner Jerry Jones wanted his team to wear a decal on their helmets honoring the five officers killed in an ambush. The NFL would have none of it. But protesting the flag? Have at it, boys!"
     
     It’s easy to protest for a fashionable cause. Thank God there are a handful of NFL players who have taken up the cause of the unborn. [see article noted below]

[bold, italics, and colored emphasis mine]

"NFL Player Who Refused to Meet Pro-Abortion President Obama Will Headline March for Life" -  Steven Ertelet, Dec. 16, 2015; http://www.lifenews.com/2015/12/16/nfl-player-who-refused-to-meet-obama-because-hes-pro-abortion-will-headline-march-for-life/
     "A former NFL football player for the Baltimore Ravens, who once refused to meet President Barack Obama because he;s pro-abortion, will headline this year’s March for Life. The March for Life is an annual event with more than half a million people going to the nation’s capital to memorialized the 57 million unborn babies who have been victimized since Roe v. Wade was handed down in January 1973."
     "Baltimore Ravens offensive lineman Matt Birk is pro-life — so when it came time for the Ravens to visit President Barack Obama for the annual congratulations ceremony for the Super Bowl winners , he decided not to go."
    “I wasn’t there,” Birk said in 2013 when he refused to meet with Obama. “I would say this, I would say that I have great respect for the office of the Presidency but about five or six weeks ago, our president made a comment in a speech and he said, ‘God bless Planned Parenthood.’”
    Birk is a Catholic and indicated that he took offense to Obama’s comments...".

#2090 (9/29) "Taking a Knee or Taking a Stand on the NFL"

"TAKING A KNEE OR TAKING A STAND ON THE NFL" - Jarrett Stepman / September 28, 2017 / http://dailysignal.com/2017/09/28/taking-knee-taking-stand-nfl [AS I SEE IT: While people talk  about the right of players to express their opinion, you don't hear people giving the same regard to the President. Yes, he could have made his comments less stridently, but to see players responding in such numbers with NO clear statement of just WHAT they are protesting makes you  wonder if they are just reacting to the President more than any "social injustice." (You also have to wonder how many are doing so because the "team" aspect of the sport requires them to "stand united" rather than having the strength of character to do what they believe is right.) And why couldn't they just voice their opinions as individuals before or after a game, rather than during a time when Americans should put differences aside and stand united FOR those who've given their ultimate sacrifice for our many rights. Maybe it's much to do about nothing, but then I admit to having growing anger as I mulled over the whole controversy while working last night. Personally, until this issue is resolved in a common sense way, I have no more desire to watch any more NFL games. That's MY protest. - Stan]

Sundays aren’t just for church anymore, they are for getting a political sermon from the National Football League. Football is a truly American game, and it is more than a little tragic to witness the rapid unraveling of the NFL as a unifying passion. The response from the league and players after the terrorist attacks on 9/11 was a great moment for the United States. But times have changed.

Kneeling for the national anthem before games, which began in 2016 with former San Francisco 49er quarterback and now currently unemployed NFL player Colin Kaepernick, has spread throughout the sport. Racism and police brutality have been cited as reasons for the protest movement, but its general aims have been vague at best.

The controversy was dialed up when President Donald Trump called out Kaepernick and fellow anthem kneelers at a political rally in Alabama. Trump said of the protests: “That’s a total disrespect of our heritage. That’s a total disrespect of everything that we stand for.” He then said that players who don’t respect the national anthem should be taken off the field, or perhaps fired.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement that Trump’s comments demonstrated “an unfortunate lack of respect for the NFL, our great game and all of our players, and a failure to understand the overwhelming force for good our clubs and players represent in our communities.” While the NFL has remained hands off with the kneeling problem and defends its players, it must be noted that this is a league that fines players for celebrating touchdowns, prevents signs of solidarity with the police, and even stops players from wearing cleats that pay tribute to those killed on 9/11.

Yet, the NFL neither said nor did anything when Kaepernick wore socks depicting police as pigs and appears to be encouraging players to continue protests against the anthem unabated.

Free speech and association are some of the most important factors in what makes America great. These values certainly aren’t practiced in, say, communist Cuba. Perhaps someone should inform Kaepernick, who has worn a shirt positively depicting the now-deceased Cuban dictator Fidel Castro.

Unsurprisingly, the games following the tussle between Trump and the NFL saw widespread demonstrations. Numerous incidents occurred throughout the league with individual players kneeling for the anthem or ignoring it to continue warming up as the song played. And numerous teams either kneeled for the anthem or stayed in the locker room.

At a game in London, players from the Jacksonville Jaguars and Baltimore Ravens kneeled for the “Star-Spangled Banner” while standing in respect for the U.K.’s national anthem, “God Save the Queen.” “The way we reacted today, and this weekend, made me proud,” Goodell said. “I’m proud of our league.”

Though the resistance to Trump and the general anthem kneeling movement has drawn praise from the media and liberal commentators, there are signs that it isn’t being received as well by the general public. NFL ratings have been in decline, perhaps for a number of reasons, including boring games and lengthy commercials, but polls have consistently shown that politics has become a significant factor.

People are simply sick of seeing political crusades infect popular pastimes, especially when they are aimed at uniting ideas like patriotism that the national anthem represents. According to a Reuters poll, 72 percent of Americans said that they believe Kaepernick’s protest of the national anthem was unpatriotic, and another 61 percent said they generally don’t approve of his protest.
Players who sat for the anthem were frequently booed, as was the case at a Washington Redskins-Oakland Raiders game, which was the lowest rated Sunday Night Football game since 2006. 

Clearly, many fans aren’t pleased with what’s happening to their cherished sport and want to keep the simple demonstrations of patriotism and respect for the national anthem. While the NFL has every right to handle the anthem situation in the way that it chooses, it is still worrying and tragic that a once universal practice of standing in respect for the flag and our country is now a lightning rod of political controversy. The unifying elements of America’s favorite game are quickly becoming a thing of the past, and that’s a shame.

[bold, italics, and colored emphasis mine]

Jarrett Stepman is an editor for The Daily Signal. Send an email to Jarrett.

"American Sniper Widow to NFL: Guys, You've Lost Me" - Matt Vespa Matt Vespa |Posted: Sep 28, 2017; https://townhall.com/tipsheet/mattvespa/2017/09/28/american-sniper-widow-to-nfl-guys-youve-lost-me-n2387603
"The NFL Has Its Hands Deep in Taxpayer Money" - Michelle Malkin/ September 27, 2017 / http://dailysignal.com/2017/09/27/nfl-hands-deep-taxpayer-money/

#2089 (9/28) "TAX REFORM JUST GOT REAL. Why the GOP Tax Plan Is Great News for America."

"TAX REFORM JUST GOT REAL. Why the GOP Tax Plan Is Great News for America." - Adam Michel / September 27, 2017 / http://dailysignal.com/2017/09/27/tax-reform-just-got-real-gop-tax-plan-great-news-america/ [AS I SEE IT: This is an ambitious plan but it's long overdue. Yes, some of the proposals may be cut back in order to gain more support, but let's pray that the basic changes it promotes will be kept in tact and that individual Americans and the American economy will benefit in the long run. - Stan]

Republican leaders unveiled the outline of their tax plan on Wednesday, receiving the endorsement of President Donald Trump. (Photo: Ron Sachs/CNP/Sipa USA/Newscom)

Bold tax reform got a big boost on Wednesday. Leaders in the House, the Senate, and the White House have all agreed on a tax outline, meaning a true update to our broken tax system could be imminent.

First, the GOP tax plan framework would lower taxes for individual Americans. It would double the standard deduction for individuals and thereby expand the zero-percent bracket, and it would create three income tax brackets (down from seven): 12, 25, and 35 percent, respectively.
Most simply, this will allow all Americans to keep more of their hard-earned money in their pockets.

Importantly, the plan goes a long way toward fixing our business tax system, which makes it hard for U.S. businesses to invest in new equipment and new factories. Slow investment caused by our high and distortionary taxes has limited American job creation and slowed wage growth.
This isn’t some hidden truth known only to economists. Almost 80 percent of Americans understand that high corporate taxes lead to lower wages and encourage corporations to do business outside of the U.S. The proposed new 20 percent corporate tax rate would mean a raise for hardworking Americans.
     To maximize its benefits, tax reform must include permanent full expensing. This would allow companies to write off the cost of investments they make in their own workplace immediately, such as the cost of office space needed to hire additional workers. Right now, the proposal grants five years of expensing, but that can easily be expanded at little additional cost. This simple change, if made permanent, could grow the economy by more than 5 percent over 10 years. Without full expensing, the current system will continue to keep the cost of investing artificially high, thus discouraging business expansion.
    The benefits of expensing are not just for large corporations. All businesses can take advantage of expensing, big and small. Permanent expensing must be a primary component of any tax reform plan that emphasizes economic growth and job creation.
    The new proposal also includes a territorial business tax system. This would put American businesses on a level playing field with their foreign competitors and finally bring overseas profits back to the U.S.

As reform moves forward, focus will also turn to the more contentious reforms, some of which we cannot forget.
     For years, politicians have called for getting rid of “special interest tax breaks” and “closing loopholes.” That sounds good in theory, but as soon as Congress gets specific, K Street lobbyists will swarm Capitol Hill to protect their favorite handouts.
    One of the most important reforms in this vein is to eliminate the state and local tax deduction. This provision benefits only a minority of taxpayers and creates a federal subsidy for expansions of government at the state level. This forces people in low-tax states to subsidize big-government states like California, Illinois, and New York. The state and local tax deduction is both bad policy and unfair.

The tax code should not be used to pick winners and losers. The final tax package should eliminate unjustified tax subsidies that benefit politically favored industries, such as the myriad tax breaks for wind farms, solar panels, and nuclear electricity production.There are countless other examples of preferences that need to go: the research and development tax credit, education tax credits, and the exclusion for municipal bond interest, the deduction for U.S. production activities, and the credit for low-income housing investments, to name just a few.

The president has already indicated that he would like to keep some of these provisions—but updating the tax code for the 21st century requires more than just cutting taxes.
     True reform will include structural reforms like allowing permanent full expensing and rooting out all the accumulated carve-outs for special interests wholesale—not just the tax subsidies that are easy to get rid of.

Lastly, the GOP tax outline includes a new lower pass-through business rate of 25 percent for businesses that pay taxes through the individual tax code, repeal of the estate tax or “death tax,” and repeal of the corporate and individual alternative minimum taxes to simplify the tax system. Each of these additional reforms should strengthen support for tax reform and add an additional boost to the economy.

Tax reform that follows the outline we heard from the president and Congress on Wednesday can truly make America great again by unleashing higher wages, more jobs, and untold opportunity.

[bold, italics, and colored emphasis mine]

Adam Michel focuses on tax policy and the federal budget as a policy analyst in the Thomas A. Roe Institute for Economic Policy Studies at The Heritage Foundation.

"Conservatives Encouraged by Republican Framework for Tax Reform" - Rachel del Guidice / September 27, 2017; http://dailysignal.com/2017/09/27/conservatives-encouraged-by-republican-framework-for-tax-reform/

#2088 (9/27) "WHY DOESN'T GOD ALWAYS HEAL? - Nabeel and Others Who Die too Young"

"WHY DOESN'T GOD ALWAYS HEAL? - Nabeel and Others Who Die too Young" - by John Stonestreet &  G. Shane Morris, Breakpoint.org, September 26, 2017; http://www.breakpoint.org/2017/09/breakpoint-doesnt-god-always-heal/ [AS I SEE IT: As this article notes, too often Christians are prone to give platitudes when a Christian dies, esp. when they die young or unexpectedly. The author shares some great insights AND issues a great challenge for each of us to be about the mission of introducing others to Jesus. - Stan]

Recently on BreakPoint, we wrestled with why God allows natural disasters. Today, we think through another side of the problem of evil.

It’s been about two weeks since Nabeel Qureshi, after a year-long battle with stomach cancer, went to be with the Lord. This brilliant author, apologist and friend of many of us at the Colson Center was raised a devout Muslim. He loved to debate Christians, whom he often found unable to defend their beliefs. But it was in college that a knowledgeable friend challenged him to investigate the claims of Christianity.

Nabeel then encountered a God he’d never expected—a Heavenly Father who loved him and fully accepted him because of the work of Jesus Christ. And as a result, Nabeel embraced a new mission—to share Jesus with as many as possible, especially to Muslims. He wrote books, spoke, debated. He was a walking, talking example of that rare type of Christian he finally encountered in college. One that was ready to give an answer to anyone who asked for the hope that he had found. Our prayers go out for his wife, Michelle, and their young daughter, Ayah.

Many of us spent the last year praying for Nabeel. Not only because we knew him and loved him, but because of the incredible way he was using the sizeable platform that God had granted him. At Nabeel’s memorial service, his mentor Ravi Zacharias described the incredible story of his protégé this way: “This abnormally born, abnormally torn, abnormally scorned man is now abnormally gone. Gone at such an early age in life, so what I say to you is this: He’s not the only one who’s died young.”

When I learned of Nabeel’s passing, in fact, I immediately thought of Blaise Pascal, the brilliant French mathematician whose masterful apologetic work was interrupted by his death at age 39. Why would God allow someone so young and so influential for the kingdom to die?

In our answer, I think it’s important to acknowledge both what we can say, and what we can’t say. As my BreakPoint This Week co-host Ed Stetzer put it in our conversation on last week’s podcast, we don’t know the specific reason God made this decision about Nabeel’s life. Silly platitudes like “God needed him more than we do” are theologically backwards, and tossing around what I call Romans 8:28 bombs only dismiss the real hurt the death of a loved one entails.

And that tells us something we can say, that the world is, as Neal Plantinga put it, not the way it’s supposed to be. The loss that we feel points to that. Death is not only abhorrent, it’s an aberration from the way that life is supposed to be as God created it. And we sense that.

In fact, I’ll simply quote Nabeel here. He wrote, “Jesus is the God of reversal and redemption. He redeemed sinners to life by his death, and he redeemed a symbol of execution by repurposing it for salvation.” This reversal transforms even death itself, which has been “swallowed up in victory.” Nabeel now knows more fully than any of us the meaning of the Apostle Paul’s words: “To live is Christ and to die is gain.” His departure is grief for us, but complete joy for him. He is with the Savior he met years ago while searching for Allah.

We should also remember that human life belongs to God. Our western illusion of control is just that, an illusion. We have no more claim on another person’s time here on this earth than we do our own. Whatever years we have are a gift, and the God who numbers our days is the only one who knows how many we have left.

And so like Pascal and Nabeel, we should be men and women on a mission. As Chuck Colson said—“living every day as if it’s [our] last, knowing by God’s grace and love, the Savior waits for [us] beyond the grave.”

Amen. In the meantime, we mourn. But we recommit to “lay aside every weight and run with endurance the race before us,” no matter how long or how short that race will be.

 [bold, italics, and colored emphasis mine] 

RESOURCES - As John points out, Nabeel Qureshi’s story is one of many that prove to be a powerful reminder for all believers. We should be “on mission” every moment of our lives, just as his own life demonstrated. Check out the resources below to read more about Nabeel and his amazing testimony.
"Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus: A Devout Muslim Encounters Christianity" - Nabeel Qureshi | Zondervan Publishing | April 2016 - http://www.colsoncenterstore.org/Product.asp?sku=9780310527237
"God Doesn’t Give Us Answers, He Gives Us Himself" - John Stonestreet, Ed Stetzer | BreakPoint This Week | September 22, 2017; http://www.breakpoint.org/2017/09/bp-week-god-doesnt-give-us-answers-gives-us/
"Why this Muslim-turned-Christian speaker resonated with so many before his death at 34" -
Ravi Zacharias | Washington Post | September 17, 2017;https://www.washingtonpost.com/amphtml/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2017/09/17/why-this-muslim-turned-christian-speaker-resonated-with-so-many-before-his-death-at-34/
Nabeel Qureshi (1983-2017) - Justin Taylor | The Gospel Coalition | September 16, 2017; https://blogs.thegospelcoalition.org/justintaylor/2017/09/16/nabeel-qureshi-1983-2017

#2087 (9/26) "Trump Takes on the NFL's Stars... and Stripes"

"TRUMP TAKES ON THE NFL'S STARS ... AND STRIPES" - Tony Perkins, Washington Update, September 25, 2017; http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=WA17I43&f=WU17I14 [AS I SEE IT: I just don't understand what these athletes - many of whom are millionaires! - are protesting. Has anyone  really articulated what it is? And whatever it is they are protesting, why do they need to do it when they should be taking a moment to pay honor not just to the country that has so blessed them but to the countless Americans who have given their lives so that they/we can live in freedom? Also, why did they choose to do it this past Sunday, the day set aside to honor the Moms of soldiers who have given their lives for the very freedom that these players abuse? Of course they have a right to protest, but with that right - with any right - comes the duty to exercise it responsibly. without showing disrespect to others. I believe I share the growing disgust of many Americans who are becoming less inclined to watch these irresponsible athletes perform. As the author of this article suggests, maybe the time has come when we start to withdraw our entertainment dollars from supporting these who are so irresponsible and disrespectful. Why should we give our money (to attend the games/movies) or our time (to watch games/programs on television) to any form of entertainment that disrespects our country AND those who've given their lives for it? - Stan]

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It's been a long time since a group of underdog college kids beat the Soviets on ice at Lake Placid. Or since Jesse Owens sprinted his way to four gold medals while Adolf Hitler watched. Yesterday, Americans probably felt every one of the 16 years that have passed since President Bush walked to the mound at Yankee Stadium to throw out the first pitch after 9/11. They were just games -- but to a nation in crisis, they were so much more. These were the sports that united a country.

Nothing made us prouder to be Americans than the toughness that caused Kerri Strug to stick that impossible landing. Or tore our hearts open like speed skater Dan Jansen's fall when he learned his sister had died. But those moments have never felt farther away than this weekend, when sports was no longer the healer -- but the divider. A storm that had been brewing since the moment quarterback Colin Kaepernick decided to sit out the National Anthem finally boiled over, and for the first time in a long time, the biggest storyline on NFL Sunday had nothing to do with the scores.

Like most Americans, President Trump has watched this year-long controversy unfold with disdain. Tired of spoiled pros insulting his flag and country, President Trump did what President Trump does -- he vented. At a rally in Huntsville, Alabama, he unleashed on the NFL for encouraging players like Kaepernick to protest. He asked fans to send the League a message by turning off the game. "Things will stop. Just pick up and leave. Pick up and leave. Not the same game anymore anyway... Wouldn't you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say, 'Get that [expletive] off the field right now. Out. He's fired. He's fired."

Trump got the League's attention alright. Immediately, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and owners across the NFL blasted the president for his "lack of respect for the NFL." But respect isn't earned by disrespecting those who defend our freedoms. And while I think President Trump could have delivered his message more artfully, I agree with his sentiment. As someone who was willing to fight for the very freedom these players are exercising, I don't dispute their right to protest. But they'd do well to remember where those rights were earned: under the same flag they're disgracing. 

FRC's Lt. General Jerry Boykin takes that personally.
     "I served the nation in uniform for over three and a half decades, and I served in part so that these players could choose to disrespect the traditions, history, and sacrifices of a great nation. But I find it disgusting and disturbing that men like Kaepernick, who are living the American dream embodied by our flag and anthem, are so determined to belittle and denigrate the veterans and men and women currently fighting to ensure the continuance of that very dream."

Maybe these players believe that making the National Anthem the villain of a centuries-long racial divide makes a powerful statement. But in the process, it shows contempt for far more than President Trump. It dishonors the black airmen, soldiers, sailors, and Marines who've come home in caskets draped with those very stars and stripes. And I suppose most teams were too busy sitting out America's proudest tradition to realize that Sunday was Gold Star Mother's Day, set aside to honor the moms whose military sons and daughters paid the ultimate price. How many of those grieving women watched the NFL's demonstrations with tears streaming down their face at these players' ungratefulness. How many veterans who lost limbs in Iraq and Afghanistan tuned in wishing they could stand for anything ever again?

In a day where the halftime talk wasn't about missed catches or interceptions, there were some moving snapshots of the pride so many have forgotten. There was the image of the Pittsburgh Steelers's Alejandro Villanueva -- a West Point grad and Army Ranger -- who stood all alone outside the tunnel, his hand over his heart while the Star Spangled Banner played. While major networks were an anti-Trump echo chamber, fans fought back, heeding the president's call to boycott. At the Patriots game in Foxborough, boos rained down from the stands, along with shouts for the players to "stand up!" Others pushed back on the double standards on social media with pictures of Coach Joe Kennedy or Tim Tebow, who were mocked or outright punished when they took a knee... in prayer.

Rev. Franklin Graham called on America do exactly that, saying that getting on our knees before God would make a real difference in this splintered country. He's right. I think we do need to pray to unite -- but we also need to spend our money in ways that reflect our values. Just as the NFL has a right to turn their back on the flag, you have a right to turn your back on the NFL. Fans may not be able to change the players' culture, but they can refuse to participate in their anti-Americanism. In a business where the bottom line should be the bottom line, your voice makes a big difference.

[bold, italics, and colored emphasis mine]
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"Tebow Prime Example of Media's Double Standard on Taking a Knee or Taking a Stand" - Talia Wise, CBN NEWS, Sept. 25, 2017, http://www1.cbn.com/cbnnews/us/2017/september/tebow-prime-example-of-medias-different-standards-when-it-comes-to-taking-a-knee-or-taking-stand
"The Hypocrisy of the NFL" - Genevieve Wood / September 25, 2017; http://dailysignal.com/2017/09/25/the-hypocrisy-of-the-nfl/
"Army Captain Is Sole Pittsburgh Steeler to Stand for National Anthem" - Casey Ryan / September 25, 2017; http://dailysignal.com/2017/09/25/army-captain-was-sole-pittsburgh-

"Who's Divisive -- the President or the Players?" - Dennis Prager: Sep 26, 2017;https://townhall.com/columnists/dennisprager/2017/09/26/whos-divisive--the-president-or-the-players-n2386455 

#2086 (9/25) "The Mythical Constitution"

ATTENTION:  SCROLL DOWN  to get TODAY'S article entitled in ALL CAPITAL LETTERS. And PLEASE be sure to note the various PRAYER REQUESTS listed BEFORE and AFTER the posted article. (NOTE the list of DAILY prayer requests for the persecuted church.)  They ALL deserve  your intercession. 
THANK YOU.

Let's  CONTINUE PRAYING for the people of Southeast Texas and  the entire region suffering from HURICANE HARVEYy during this difficult time PRAY for the millions suffering there: pray for the safety of first responders, public safety officers and military personnel, as well as for healing for individuals, rebuilding of communities and restoration for the entire region. 

 Please also be praying for the millions who have been impacted by HURRICANE IRMA AND MARIA, in Florida and esp. in Puerto Rico and throughout the Caribbean. Many have suffered great damage to their homes and many thousands still dealing with power outages and clean-ups. 

BE Prepared TO SPEAK OUT AGAINST ABORTION 

(...because ALL Babies Matter! - http://www.lifenews.com/2017/03/01/why-do-unborn-babies-matter-just-because-they-are/ : Go to: LIFE Training Institute - http://prolifetraining.com/resources/five-minute-11/  

Be Prepared TO ENGAGE WITH THE PC CULTURE:Go to:"Tactics" - 

http://townhall.com/columnists/mikeadams/2016/04/29/tactics-n2154983
"Don't Argue the Exceptions - Beating Bad Arguments For Abortion and Transgenderism" - by John Stonestreet, Breakpoint.org, May 25, 2017; http://breakpoint.org/2017/05/breakpoint-dont-argue-exceptions/

*SEPT. 20 UPDATE : American Pastor Andrew Brunson -  President Trump is scheduled to meet with Turkey's President Erdogan TOMORROW (9/21). He is aware of Pastor Brunson's situation. PRAY  that he can cause the pastor to finally be released./ https://aclj.org/persecuted-church/new-false-charges-levied-at-american-pastor-andrew-brunson-as-unjust-imprisonment-in-turkey-grows-more-dangerous He still languishes in a Turkish prison [since last Oct. 7^th]. He’s one of 19 prisoners in a 10-person cell. He is the only Christian. Pastor Andrew has been falsely charged with “membership in an armed terrorist organization.” He has served and loved the people of Turkey for more than two decades. Now this U.S. citizen is in extreme danger - falsely charged for his Christian faithfor more than two decades. Now this U.S. citizen is in extreme danger – falsely charged for his Christian faith. The American Center for Law and Justice is representing his  family and have launched an agressive global campaign demanding  that Turkey - a fellow member of NATO - release him immmediately. We’re working on Capitol Hill with our nation’s leaders, through our international offices, and around the globe to secure the release of Pastor Andrew. Now, we are preparing to send a critical legal letter to Turkey’s president in the next few days. Time is of the essence. Sign our letter before we send it. Join the fight. Be Pastor Andrew’s voice. He needs it now more than ever.Sign Our Petition: Free American Pastor Andrew Brunson.https://aclj.org/persecuted-church/free-american-pastor-andrew-brunson LET’S  PLEASE PRAY FOR HIS VERY SOON RELEASE!

NORTH KOREAN THREAT: Let's be praying that our leaders will be led by Godly wisdom in responding.

CONGRESSMAN SCALISE: Let's Continue to pray for Congressman Scalise and his family .UPDATE: "Not Official; Great News: Steve Scalise Returning to Work in September" - Katie Pavlich : Aug 14, 2017; https://townhall.com/tipsheet/katiepavlich/2017/08/14/great-news-steve-scalise-returning-to-work-in-september-n2368430

LATEST PERSONAL UPDATE of  9/19: Please check the right side of this blog page for the JOURNAL section, scrolling down for any past entries you might have missed. And THANK YOU for your continued PRAYERS. P.S- 9/16: Florida Gators beat Tennessee, 26-20! - Blessed to have had the day off and got to watch my Gators win one of the most thrilling football games I've ever seen.

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"THE MYTHICAL CONSTITUTION" - Joseph Postell / September 14, 2017 / http://dailysignal.com/2017/09/14/the-mythical-constitution/

Detail from a frieze depicting the signing of the Constitution decorates the U.S. Capitol. (Photo: Steve Gottlieb/Stock Connection Worldwide /Newscom)

The nation marks the 230th birthday of our Constitution this weekend [16th-17th]. On Sunday, many Americans of all political persuasions who are aware of Constitution Day will praise the Framers of that document and express gratitude that they live under its protections. They will celebrate the fact that we have a representative democracy, where the laws are written by people who must stand for re-election at regular intervals.They will praise our system of separated powers, where no person has the power to be lawmaker, investigator, prosecutor, judge, jury, and executioner. And they will cheer for the Bill of Rights, which guarantees our freedoms from searches without probable cause and from self-incrimination, and secures our rights to due process.

One problem, though. That Constitution—the one taught to students in high school civics classes—doesn’t really exist anymore. Nowadays, American government follows a process that barely resembles the basic principles established in our fundamental law.

Of course, we haven’t parted with the Constitution officially. Congress still enacts laws from time to time, and we still elect its members. The president’s election is independent from Congress, unlike many parliamentary systems, and federal judges are independent of the legislative and executive branches because of their tenure during good behavior and their fixed salaries. It would be incorrect to say that today’s system is completely unconnected to the Constitution’s structure.

The problem is that our textbook description of American government conceals the reality of the administrative state. Most of the rules that govern our behavior are made by administrative agencies, not by Congress. Administrative agencies also investigate, prosecute, and enforce violations of these rules.

The agencies have the power to “adjudicate” disputes stemming from their rules, in what Columbia law professor Philip Hamburger calls “miniature courts” within the agencies themselves. Administrative judges and administrative law judges are new features of our political system, so that even the judges are no longer independent.

In many cases, the Bill of Rights itself has been considered inapplicable.

Unlike traditional law enforcement, many bureaucrats have power to search private property without a particular warrant. In administrative proceedings, the right to avoid self-incrimination is frequently dispensed with. The right to trial by jury, guaranteed by the Seventh Amendment, is not always recognized, even in administrative decisions where millions of dollars of fines are on the line.

This amounts, in essence, to a policy making process that exists in limbo, somewhere outside the normal constitutional process and the normal constitutional constraints. Almost everyone paying attention acknowledges that the existence of this administrative state raises important constitutional questions. But to many, it seems like bureaucratic government is just one of those things that we’re stuck with as a necessary part of modern life.

This is not the path we had to take. Regulation and administration have existed throughout American history. There were building codes, environmental, health, and safety rules, and plenty of regulatory programs during the first years of our nation. The difference is that those regulations were enacted by elected representatives passing laws, or by judges who applied the principles of common law to resolve disputes among citizens. The regulations were merely enforced, and carried out, by the administrative agencies that today are often the lawmakers, investigators, judges, juries, and executioners. We had administration, but not an administrative state.

It was more difficult, admittedly, to regulate through these constitutional mechanisms. But people agreed that the Constitution’s principles were important enough to accept the inconvenience of following them. Looking back at how they managed to enact regulations within the Constitution’s boundaries is something we should be doing today.

For several years, Congress has taken a closer look at reforming this administrative state that has grown up around the Constitution and threatens its core principles. But thus far, very little has been completed. The path back to constitutional government will be long and difficult from this Constitution Day, but many good ideas have been offered for bringing our administrative behemoth back into the constitutional framework. It is the responsibility of Congress to rein in the administrative state and begin the slow, arduous task of rebuilding constitutional government.

Joseph Postell is associate professor of political science at the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs and visiting fellow in American political thought in the B. Kenneth Simon Center for Principles and Politics at The Heritage Foundation. He is the author of “Bureaucracy in America: The Administrative State’s Challenge to Constitutional Government.”

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PRAYER MATTERS:

"To clasp the hands in prayer is the beginning of an uprising against the disorder of the world." - Karl Barth; "Prayer is inviting God into a seemingly impossible situation and trusting/resting in His love and grace to accomplish His perfect will in His perfect time and for His greatest glory." - Stan 

“INTERCESSORS ARE THE RUDDER” – A WORD OF ENCOURAGEMENT - Wanda Alger, June 28th, 2017; https://www.getamericapraying.com/blog/

I was recently given a word by my good friend, Bill Yount. His word greatly encouraged me as an intercessor. Working for Intercessors for America, I soon realized it was not just a word for me, but for all who have been praying for our nation, wondering if their prayers are truly making any difference. Bill told me, “I kept seeing you as a small rudder on a huge ship. Hidden, but giving guidance. Although it seemed slow it was turning the whole ship. Patience was needed to see the impact of your…ministry. I sense the Lord saying, ‘Don’t jump ship! I’ve made you the rudder!’ ” I was immediately touched in my spirit by this encouragement, knowing that our seemingly small place in prayer was having a great impact.

James 3:4 talks about the power of a small rudder to steer a large ship. In this scripture about the power of our tongue, consider the power of prophetic intercession! In the Forerunner Commentary on this verse we read, “…rudders manipulate the course of immense ocean vessels with a slight movement of a pilot’s hand. Since it is underwater and aft, the rudder of a ship does its work UNSEEN. A passenger is ignorant of its movements most of the time. Yet, when it is in proper working order, the rudder holds more power over the ship than the wind. The wind will blow, toss, even destroy the ship’s rigging, but the rudder guides the ship exactly where it directs.”

This is God’s promise to the intercessors in this hour of national turbulence. Don’t stop praying! Your prayers have great power to turn the ship! Continue praying, interceding, and discerning the workings and movements of the Holy Spirit, being faithful to God’s commands. As we come together to declare God’s faithfulness, this nation will, once again, head in the direction that God intends. Don’t give up and don’t give in. Regardless of the winds of adversity and the fires of the enemy, God’s people have a power that cannot be matched. Let us join in faith and continue to pray and speak of God’s faithfulness in order to bring God’s people and this nation into the fullness of God’s plans. Note this additional encouragement from God’s word:

Colossians 2:15 – “He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him” (ESV). 

Psalm 33:8-11 – “Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the people of the world revere him. For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm. The Lord foils the plans of the nations; He thwarts the purposes of the peoples. But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations.” 

Wanda Alger, IFA Field Correspondent

PRAY FOR AMERICA: THANK GOD for His many blessings on America throughout it's history. May we then ask that AMERICA once again be a blessing TO GOD, by once again submitting to HIS will in our affairs - both personal and national - that He may truly "heal our land." (2 Chron. 7:14) Short of that, we should not be saying "God Bless America"but instead "God be merciful towards America!"

PRAY FOR OUR LEADERS:  1) Pray for President Trump and his advisers, that they would select Godly leaders at the federal level who will be accountable to do an excellent job (or be fired!) ; that he would seek God's wisdom and be enabled to lead our country effectively in the years ahead; and 2) Pray our leaders at every level of government will Spirit-filled, leading us with Godly wisdom and integrity; that they will  only pass legislation and enact policies that will benefit Americans today as well as future generations and NOT do any lasting harm.

SUPREME COURT: PRAY that the justices will only hand down decisions that are Constitutionally sound and in the best interests of our country now and for future generations.

World-Wide Prayer Requests:

[from OpenDoorsUSA - https://www.opendoorsusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/28382-PFA.pdf

Praying Through the World Watch List:  

September 22 - 30: Kuwait #38 -  Pray for the expatriate/migrant Christian communities
who continue to struggle to obtain registration permits.
September 25 | CENTRAL ASIA -  Pray for 12 believers who are facing heavy fines ($850 each) after being discovered having a secret meeting.

STANDING STRONG THROUGH THE STORM - OpenDoorsUSA.org

At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them.  2 Tim.y 4:16                                                 

SPEAK ON BEHALF OF THOSE WHO SUFFER

    

The Apostle Paul knew exactly what it was like to be alone, to be deserted by all who called themselves “brothers” and “sisters.” A former colleague who has done considerable travel among the persecuted says, “It is hard to believe that Christians are the largest persecuted group in the world today. But it is even more difficult to believe that this is so seldom mentioned in our gatherings and church services. More Christians know the names of their favorite actors than their fellow believers who are in prison.”

He continues, “With every trip something in my heart breaks as I hear the echoes of suffering:

I remember the echoes of an Egyptian mother as she shared how her young boy was stuck in a haystack because she refused to deny Jesus.

I remember the sounds of weeping as fellow students in Indonesia shared how Sariman, their co-student, was hacked to death.

I remember the cries of anguish as we walked from church to church that was burned to the ground on the island of Lombok.

I remember the tears of Rebecca in Iran as she showed the picture of her father who was stabbed to death for sharing the gospel.

I remember the voice of Pastor Daniel in Vietnam as he shared how he was chained to the ground for six months.

I remember the fear of Grace from Sudan as she shared how her church was attacked and her friend was shot through the head.

Oh, I remember the cries of Caleb in Eritrea as he shared with tears how two dear friends were executed in front of him because of their faith.

And I remember the tears of Joy in the southern Philippines as she shared how her fiancé was shot to death in their church in Mindanao.

But, most all, I remember the deafening sounds of silence every time I return home.

RESPONSE

How can I be silent today? How can I not speak on behalf of those who suffer? How can I desert those that belong to the same body that I belong to and who desperately need the encouragement of my intervention on their behalf?

PRAYER

Lord, broaden my awareness of the needs of my suffering brothers and sisters. May I not be known for my silence.

PRAY for the ON-GOING crisis now happening in IRAQ/SYRIA.  Pray that coalition forces will be able to destroy the leadership and infrastructure of ISIS.*For believers in Syria and in this region as they navigate so much uncertainty. May they remain faithful to God through these most difficult times as He sustains them with peace and endurance. May the gospel be ever-present in their minds. 

#2085 (9/24) SUNDAY SPECIAL: "Genocide in Burma - Why a Persecuted Muslim Minority Should Matter to Christians

"GENOCIDE IN BURMA - Why a Persecuted Muslim Minority Should Matter to Christians" - by: John Stonestreet & Roberto Rivera, Breakpoint.org, September 22, 2017; http://www.breakpoint.org/2017/09/breakpoint-genocide-burma/ [NOTE: The annual Day of Prayer for Persecuted Christians is Nov. 5. The Open Doors ministry is offering a  FREE IDOP kit. It contains a video about  Christians in Syria, prayer  points, a sample sermon, facts about persecution, and a presentation outline. There is NO reason YOUR church should not be noting this ONE day a year (though this ongoing tragedy should be addressed often THROUGHOUT the year). PLEASE alert YOUR pastor and challenge him to make NOV. 5th a time of prayer for  our persecuted brothers and sisters around the world. Refer him to: http://prayerevent.opendoorsusa.org/]

When we think of religious persecution, the Middle East usually comes to mind. But things have also gotten nasty in Southeast Asia.

According to a report issued by the International State Crime Initiative, the Rohingya ethnic group in Burma is facing “the final stages of genocide.” Whether what’s happening in Burma meets the exact definition of genocide, it’s undoubtedly a horrific violation of human rights and a humanitarian catastrophe. It’s also part of a larger and very troubling pattern: religious-based persecution in South and Southeastern Asia.

Until a few months ago, most of us had never heard of the Rohingya. So here’s some overly simplified background: To speak of Burma as if it were a nation-state like, for instance, the Netherlands, is a misnomer. There are actually eight officially-recognized “major national ethnic races” in Burma. They speak languages belonging to four different, mutually unintelligible major language families. While the overwhelming majority of Burmese citizens are at least nominally Buddhist, some of these “national ethnic races” are predominately Christian.

That brings us back to the Rohingya. The Rohingya, who are Muslims, are not one of the recognized “major ethnic races.” Since 1982, they haven’t even been Burmese citizens. It’s impossible to understand what’s going  on with the Rohingya without taking into account the Burmese government’s abysmal treatment of religious minorities. Open Doors USA characterizes the level of religious persecution in Burma as “very high.”

It wasn’t only Open Doors who took notice of the treatment of Burmese religious minorities. Persecution of Burmese Christians was the subject of, believe it or not, the 2008 movie “Rambo” starring Sylvester Stallone. While Rambo was able to save one group of fictional Burmese Christians, for our brethren in the real world what the United States Conference on International Religious Freedom calls the “Hidden Plight [of] Christian Minorities in Burma,” continues largely unabated.

That plight includes “discrimination, forced conversions, violence and desecration of churches and Christian communities.” While Burma’s persecuted Christian minority are, on paper at least, citizens, and, thus, entitled to reside in the country, the Rohingya are not. So, the Burmese government is taking drastic measures to make them leave.

They’ve seized on the actions of a handful of Rohingya militants to collectively punish more than two million people. And prior to the recent crackdown by the Burmese government,  nearly one million Rohingya had already fled Burma in the past few decades. And as if to confirm that there’s no depth to which human depravity will not sink, some refugees who reached places like Thailand have been held for ransom, caught in sex trafficking, or even murdered.

Father Thomas Reese, the Chairman of the Commission on International Religious Freedom, articulated one of the many reasons that Christians should be concerned and moved to action. “The plight of both Rohingya Muslims and Christians results from successive governments that have both perpetuated and supported religious violation . . . It’s time for Burma to defend religious freedom.”

Furthermore, the persecution of these groups is part of a troubling rise in religious nationalism throughout the region. In Burma, the government’s biggest cheerleaders are militant Buddhist monks.

It isn’t only Burma. In countries such as Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Laos, Bhutan, and, India, Christianity—and also Islam—is increasingly seen as an “alien” religion which must be repressed so that Buddhism and Hinduism can assume their “rightful” place.

We need to stand firm against the forces of what Open Doors calls “religious nationalism,” even if the victims aren’t Christians. Because tomorrow they probably will be.


[bold, italics, and colored emphasis mine]

RESOURCES - Read more about the plight of Burma’s Rohingya population, and learn about organizations that work on behalf of persecuted minorities around the globe. Click on the links below.
"Burma's Million-Strong Rohingya Population Faces 'Final Stages of Genocide,' Says Report" - Rishi Iyengar | Time.com | October 28, 2015; http://time.com/4089276/burma-rohingya-genocide-report-documentary/
"Myanmar: Who are the Rohingya?" -Al Jazeera staff writers,2017; - http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2017/08/rohingya-muslims-170831065142812.html
Voice of the Martyrs - https://www.persecution.com/
Freedom House - https://freedomhouse.org/
International Christian Concern - http://www.persecution.org/
Christian Solidarity International - http://csi-usa.org/

"They Say We Are Infidels: On the Run from Isis with Persecuted Christians in the Middle East" - Mindy Belz | Tyndale Momentum Publishers | April 2017 - http://www.colsoncenterstore.org/Product.asp?sku=9781496411488

#9084 (9/23) PRO-LIFE SAT: "No Compassion for the Mentally Ill - Canada’s Obsession with the 'Right to Die'”

"NO COMPASSION FOR THE MENTALLY ILL - CANADA'S OBSESSION WITH THE 'RIGHT TO DIE'” - by: Eric Metaxas &  Roberto Rivera, Breakpoint.org, September 11, 2017; http://www.breakpoint.org/2017/09/breakpoint-no-compassion-for-the-mentally-ill

Canadians, or at least Canadian media elites, seem intent on creating a real-life version of what novelist P.D. James, in her novel “The Children of Men,” called “quietus”: that is, state-sanctioned mass suicide of the those deemed to be a burden to the rest of society.

John Stonestreet told you about a recent article in Maclean’s magazine (think Time or Newsweek for our friends north of the border), that asked “Should doctors be paid a premium (for) assisting deaths?” The answer was a resounding “Yes!” Without such a “premium,” what Canada calls “medical assistance in dying,” “will exist in theory only, and not in practice.”

That was just the beginning for Maclean’s. The August 15, 2017 issue told the story of a palliative care doctor who decided that, in addition to providing end-of-life care to dying patients, he would assist them with the actual dying.Not surprisingly, the story was wrapped in gauzy haze that made everyone involved appear noble beyond words: think noted humanitarian Albert Schweitzer, instead of Jack Kevorkian.

There was no hint of where this ersatz brand of “compassion” could lead. For that, you only had to look back a few months in the magazine’s archives. A few months earlier, an article in the magazine argued that, although “It may make some people understandably uncomfortable… extending the right to assisted dying to the mentally ill is a compassionate solution.”

I told you about the move to extend the so-called “right to die” to mentally ill people back in May. I told you back then that it was a terrible idea, and now that I’ve seen the rationale fully set forth, I’m looking for a word that’s stronger than “terrible.”

The piece was written by Daniel Munro of the Conference Board of Canada whose stated goal is to—and I’m not making this up—build “a better future for Canadians by making our economy and society more dynamic and competitive.” According to Munro, it’s “not clear why” the principle that justifies euthanasia for the terminally ill “should apply any less to people with mental illness.”

That “principle” isn’t compassion, which comes from the Latin for “to suffer with.” No, the principle Munro and others cite is autonomy—“allowing individuals to choose the time and manner of their deaths, just as we allow people to choose how they will lead their lives.”

The New Testament Greek word for compassion is “splagchnizomai.” It means being moved in our guts, our bowels, in response to the suffering of others. But today, according to Macleans anyway, compassion means being careful not to violate someone’s autonomy.

This enshrinement of autonomy goes a long way toward explaining why the “right to die” will not and cannot be limited to the terminally ill. If you begin with the assumption that people have a right to live and die as they please, then there’s no good reason to limit lethal medical assistance to only one group of suffering people.

So we need to remember, as I told you in my earlier broadcast, that when a mentally-ill person says “please let me die,” you can never be certain whether it’s the person speaking or the mental illness speaking. What matters to Macleans is not interfering with how a person chooses to end their life. And that, my friends, is the exact opposite of a Christian worldview.

In James’ novel, state-sanctioned quietus was the product of a society literally without a future. In Canada’s case, it’s being championed by people who claim to be working for a better future. Whatever the setting, compassion is the last thing we should call it.

[bold, italics, and colored emphasis mine]

RESOURCES - The Christian alternative to assisted dying is to provide compassionate palliative care to those who are physically and/or mentally ill. As Eric reminds us, compassion leads us to suffer with those who suffer.
"Canada, the “Right to Die,” and the Mentally Ill: Death through Despair and Deception" - 
Eric Metaxas | BreakPoint.org | May 10, 2017; http://www.breakpoint.org/2017/05/breakpoint-canada-the-right-to-die-and-the-mentally-ill/
"Always Care, Never Kill: How Physician-Assisted Suicide Endangers the Weak, Corrupts Medicine, Compromises the Family, and Violates Human Dignity and Equality" - Ryan T. Anderson | Heritage Foundation | March 24, 2015; http://archive.breakpoint.org/images/content/breakpoint/Document_Links/Heritage_Brief_-_Always_Care_Never_Kill.pdf