#387 (12/15) "10 Things Americans Spend More on Than Elections

PRAYER REQUEST: My long-time friend, Alex, hopes to have an opportunity to share the gospel with his Mom this Christmas. PRAY that her heart would  be open and that she might respond to the invitation to trust in Christ.

NOTE:  TODAY marks 39 days before the 40th anniversary of the infamous Roe v. Wade decision that spearheaded the legalizaion of the abortion of the unborn in America. I feel led to begin a 40 day period of prayer and (limited) fasting to honor the memory of the almost 60 million ! unborn that have been murdered and the 10s of millions of their mothers, fathers, and siblings who have been victimized by this great American Holocaust. I will share more in a later post(s), for now, may I ask you to

PLEASE PRAY: 1. For the girls/women each day contemplating an abortion; the abortionists and their staff; the crisis pregnancy centers seeking to serve the women facing unplanned pregnancies.
2,  For the passage of even more state laws that will effectively help to limit the number of abortions being performed.
3. The defunding of Planned Parenthood that performs over 300,000 abortions (about 1/3 the toal) for profit and still receives almost 1/2 billion dollars in federal tax dollars.
4. That one day America might finally pass a constitutional amendment promoting the Sanctity of Every Human Life - in effect oulawing both abortion and euthanasia.
5. For churches/Christians being pro-life- not just claiming to be but demonstrating it conclusively by their actiions.

AS I SEE IT: I mourn with the nation at the murder of 20 children and 6 adults yesterday in Connecticut. In the news coverage, it was often repeated at the innocence of the children, with the President remarking of how they had had their whole lives ahead of them. It struck everyone how the President seemed to tear up in addressing the nation, apparently thinking of the tragedy in terms of his own 2 daughters. (I was struck in speaking with a good friend about another matter how he (with 2 daughters in grade school himself) asked if we could  pray before we ended the phone conversation.) It's not hard to understand how parents would be moved especially to think of their own children at times like these. AND YET, as in past such tragedies, I am struck by how no one seems to see it in the context of the on-going almost 40 year American Holocaust of abortion. Because it's legal (though without question immoral), somehow the fact that over 4,000 (200 TIMES! the number killed yesterday) of our MOST innocent are DAILY often having their bodies pullled apart in their mother's womb before the piecees are removed by their paid hit-man, the abortionist. WHERE IS THE GRIEF AND OUTRAGE CONCERNING THE DAILY SLAUGHTE OF OUR MOST INNOCENT? (It does strike me as rather hypocritical that our most pro-abortion President can shed a tear for the children murdered yesterday.)

"10 Things Americans Spend More on Than Elections, by Lachlan Markay,"  December 7, 2012 http://blog.heritage.org/2012/12/07/10-things-americans-spend-more-on-than-elections/ [Take particular note of my comments about each of the 10 things  below. (; ]

The $6 billion tab of 2011-12 election cycle political expenditures had barely been tallied before anti-free speech groups began calling for additional campaign finance reforms. With all the hyperventilating over the supposedly outsized spending on American elections, we thought it would be insightful to examine some of the things on which Americans spend more – vastly more, in some cases – than their political system.

(Note: The tallies below are annual expenditures. If an election cycle is measured as a two-year time frame, a two-year comparison would actually double the totals below.)

1. Video games – $9.3 billion  [I've only played a video game several times in my life. Maybe I'm just old, but I rather get addicted to reading good books (and to be sure there is more out there than we'll ever have time to read).

2. Pet food – $19.5 billion [Okay, as a devoted cat lover, now we're getting personal. (:]

3. Cosmetics – $33.3 billion [Never have, never will understand how so much of such things are 'over the top.']

4. Movie theater admissions – $10.4 billion [With the size and resolution of most television sets today, and the easy access to movies on DVD if you're willing to be patient and wait, is it really necessary to pay out the ridiculously increasing prices for tickets - not to mention what they charge for you to snack while watching a movie?]

5. Halloween – $8 billion [Just an occasion to dress up in costumes, kids to threaten neighbors for free candy ("tick or treat:"), or a time that will always be associated with horror and evil? How about just celebrating it as it was for centuries- the Christian All Saints Eve?]

6. Pizza – $27 billion [It doesn't matter how much veggies you put on it, it will never be a healthy food, though it is admittedly a convenient comfort food.]

7. Bottled water – $21.7 billion [Better than tap -  really? It's best use is to have it around after a natural disaster.]

8. Lottery tickets – $59 billion [Merely a voluntary tax that leads many - esp. the needy -  to become gambling addicts; also just feeding the idea of getting something for 'nothing.']

9. Tax preparation – $140 billion [One of the best reasons for the need for major revision of our out of control federal tax code. Like tobacco famers, we surely can find jobs for the tax preparers will be put out of work.]

10. Coffee – $11 billion [Alright, we're getting personal again. Didn't you hear about how it can prevent cancer? - honest, it was on the evening news the other night.]

[bold emphasis, and bracketed comments, as always, mine]

#386 (12/14) "Happy Birthday to the Minutemen"

NOTE: As I woke up this morning, the Lord made me realize for the first time that TODAY marks 40 days before the 40th anniversary of the infamous Roe v. Wade decision that spearheaded the legalizaion of the abortion of the unborn in America. I feel led to begin a 40 day period of prayer and (limited) fasting to honor the memory of the almost 60 million ! unborn that have been murdered and the 10s of millions of their mothers, fathers, and siblings who have been victimized by this great American Holocaust. I will share more in a later post(s), for now, may I ask you to

PLEASE PRAY:

1. For the girls/women each day contemplating an abortion; the abortionists and their staff; the crisis pregnancy centers seeking to serve the women facing unplanned pregnancies.
2,  For the passage of even more state laws that will effectively help to limit the number of abortions being performed.
3. The defunding of Planned Parenthood that performs over 300,000 abortions (about 1/3 the toal) for profit and still receives almost 1/2 billion dollars in federal tax dollars.
4. That one day America might finally pass a constitutional amendment promoting the Sanctity of Every Human Life - in effect oulawing both abortion and euthanasia.
5. For churches/Christians being pro-life- not just claiming to be but demonstrating it conclusively by their actiions.

"Pentagon Says Afghan Forces Still Need Assistance," December 11, 2012, http://www.presidentialprayerteam.com/Prayerwatch?pw=962

As President Obama considers how quickly to withdraw the remaining 68,000 American troops in Afghanistan and turn over the war to Afghan security forces, a bleak new Pentagon report has found that only one of the Afghan National Army’s 23 brigades is able to operate independently without air or other military support from the United States and NATO partners.

The report, released Monday, also found that violence in Afghanistan is higher than it was before the surge of American forces into the country two years ago, although it is down from a high in the summer of 2010.

The assessment found that the Taliban remain resilient, that widespread corruption continues to weaken the central Afghan government and that Pakistan persists in providing critical support to the insurgency. Insider attacks by Afghan security forces on their NATO coalition partners, while still small, are up significantly: there have been 37 so far in 2012, compared with 2 in 2007.
As bright spots the report identified the continued transition by Afghan security forces into taking the lead on most routine patrols throughout the country and a decline in violence in populated areas like Kabul, the Afghan capital, and Kandahar, the largest city in the south. (Source: New York Times)   PRAYER REQUESTS:

• For our military men and women serving in Afghanistan who will be away from t their families for the holidays.
• For the men and women of the military who know the Lord to be a vibrant and effective witness during this season.
• About the political and military situations in Afghanistan as well as here in the U.S. in areas of aid, troop strength, departure dates and Islamic militancy.

NOTE: You may note that I post a lot of articles from the highly respected conserative think tank The Heritage Foundation. The following is an example of why I do so. It speaks to an issue of our day in the context of the history of the American republic. There is so much great information available there that I hope that you will take time to visit their website to see it for yourself. [www.blog.heritage.org]

"Happy Birthday to the Minutemen," Steven Bucci, December 13, 2012, http://blog.heritage.org/2012/12/13/happy-birthday-to-the-minutemen/

Photo: Stan Honda/AFP/Getty Images

[Yesterday, December 13, was] ... the birthday of the National Guard, our nation’s oldest force.

The brave men and women of the Army and Air Force National Guard are the descendants of the men and boys who rallied to Lexington and Concord to fire “the shot heard ’round the world.” They are every bit as important today. In spite of this, the U.S. is rewarding their sacrifices with massive cuts that will weaken their ability to protect America into the future.

In the First and Second World Wars and in Korea, National Guard units were called up to augment their active-duty brethren. In major wars, they come on duty and amplify America’s military power. Today, we have the best-trained National Guard we have ever fielded. They perform this traditional mission without equal.

The post-9/11 world has shown that there is another huge mission for the Guard: being an operational reserve in smaller wars, which last a long time, such as in Iraq and Afghanistan. The modern active-duty force is not large enough to conduct continuous extended operations over a period of years without augmentation from the Guard. The bottom line is simple: The National Guard remains an essential part of our national defense structure. Without it, the U.S. would be left hobbled. Sadly, we are headed in that direction.

Those who think looming cuts under sequestration will inordinately affect the Guard are right to be concerned. If it happens, the readiness posture of America will crumble as a result.

Let’s celebrate the long service of the Minutemen—both past and present. The nation owes them a debt of gratitude that will never be adequately repaid. We can start with Congress and the Administration giving them the support they need and have earned.

[bold and italics emphasis  mine]

#385 (12/13) "The Supreme Court’s Challenge: Restore Marriage Decisions to Citizens"

NOTE: I hope that you had a chance to read yesterday's post #384 as it presented a look at the upcoming consideration of two cases involving same-sex marriage by the US Supreme Court. Most importantly, I hope that you will join me in the prayers included in that post, as the decision that comes down next year should rival even the Roe v. Wade decision on abortion on its impact on our society for generations to come.

[The following is from http://www.presidentialprayerteam.com/Prayerwatch?pw=962]                  

PRAYER REQUEST: As the Lord leads, please pray [if possible, EVERY DAY]:

• That the U.S. Supreme Court will uphold marriage as being between one man and one woman and invalidate homosexual marriage
• For a revival in America of traditional, Biblical values
• For the thousands of sincere people trapped in a homosexual lifestyle 

 - Ryan T. Anderson and Jennifer Marshall, December 7, 2012, http://blog.heritage.org/2012/12/07/the-supreme-courts-challenge-restore-marriage-decisions-to-citizens/

The Supreme Court announced today that it will hear cases dealing with the definition of marriage during its current term. The Court will consider challenges to the Defense of Marriage Act, passed by an overwhelming bipartisan majority in Congress and signed by President Clinton, and Proposition 8, California’s constitutional amendment to define marriage as the union of one man and one woman.
After lower courts ruled against these marriage laws, the Supreme Court now has the opportunity to return authority to citizens in answering questions about marriage policy.

Every marriage policy draws lines, leaving out some types of relationships. But equality forbids arbitrary line-drawing. Determining which lines are arbitrary requires us to answer two questions:

1. What is marriage?
2. Why does it matter for policy?

There are many good reasons why citizens in 41 states have said over and over that marriage is between a man and a woman. Marriage exists to bring a man and a woman together as husband and wife to be father and mother to any children their union produces. And as ample social science has shown, children tend to do best when reared by their mother and father.

Government recognizes marriage because it is an institution that benefits the public good. Marriage is society’s least restrictive means to ensure the well-being of future citizens. State recognition of marriage protects children by incentivizing adults to commit permanently and exclusively to each other and their children.While respecting everyone’s liberty, government rightly recognizes, protects, and promotes marriage as the ideal institution for procreative love, childbearing, and childrearing.

In recent decades, marriage has been weakened by a revisionist view that sees marriage as primarily about emotional bonds or legal privileges. In other words, it is more about adults’ desires than children’s needs. Same-sex marriage is the culmination of this revisionism: Emotional intensity would be the only thing left to set marriage apart from other bonds.

Government should not obscure the truth about marriage by accepting that revisionist view. In redefining marriage to include same-sex relationships, government would weaken marital norms, which would further delink childbearing from marriage and hurt spouses and children—especially the most vulnerable. It would deny a mother or father to a child as a matter of policy. The harms resulting from redefining marriage would force the state to intervene more often in family life and force the state’s welfare to grow even more. Citizens would lose more of their freedom of religion and conscience.

Today’s decision from the Supreme Court comes a week after the district court of Nevada upheld that state’s marriage amendment that defined marriage as the union of a man and a woman. In the coming months, the Supreme Court will consider briefs, hear oral arguments, and ultimately issue its ruling by the end of the term in June 2013. Whatever the outcome, debate on the issue of marriage will continue.
The coming months, therefore, offer an important opportunity for citizens to consider carefully what marriage is and why government should continue to recognize marriage as the union of a man and a woman.

[bold and most italics and underlines MINE]

For Further Reading:
The Heritage Foundation will continue providing resources for just such consideration. Subscribe to the Richard and Helen DeVos Center’s weekly newsletter, Culture Watch, to learn about arguments and data related to the marriage question and get updates on developments in the cases.
Other helpful resources include the Alliance Defending Freedom’s website Why Marriage Matters and the site of the California coalition that has defended Proposition 8, ProtectMarriage.com. A new book by Sherif Girgis, Ryan Anderson, and Robert P. George, What Is Marriage? Man and Woman: A Defense, provides helpful—and timely—explanations. [I continue to encourage you to get the book "Indivisible" by James Robison and Jay W. Richards. It presents a  Christian worldview look at many issues facing our nation. The chapter on same-sex marriage is particularly excellent.]

#384 (12/12) "The Definition of Marriage, the Supreme Court, and Christian Responsibility"

NOTE: This announcement by the Supreme Court emphasizes what the post #373 recently about the importance of the Supreme Court and praying for it. Below is a Christian perspective of the Court's announcement last week. Note the items marked in yellow; as always, they indicate things I suggest we be praying  about. Finally, be sure to check TOMORROW'S POST (#385) which will present a non-spiritual conservative view of the Supreme Court 's announcement.
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- By: John Stonestreet|, Breakpoint.org, December 7, 2012, http://www.breakpoint.org/tp-home/blog-archives/blog-archives/entry/4/20987?spMailingID=5250736&spUserID=MTMyMjM2ODE5OQS2&spJobID=60487436&spReportId=NjA0ODc0MzYS1

The Supreme Court of the United States has announced that, in the coming months, it will consider two cases that deal directly with the definition of marriage. The Court will take up the issue of Proposition 8, in which lower courts invalidated the will of the people of California to legally define marriage as between one man and one woman. The court will also take up the case of the Defense of Marriage Act, which the Department of Justice has refused to defend under President Obama.

What this means is that, on a legal level, 2013 will be a very important year for the institution of marriage as publicly defined in the United States of America. It’s also, therefore, a very important year for the issue of religious liberty. As we have seen with the HHS mandate, any exemptions will not be sufficient to protect the long-standing freedom of conscience that religious Americans have enjoyed.
Christians must be prepared to talk thoughtfully and winsomely about what’s at stake when it comes to the legal definition of marriage, and to dispel the myths that are often perpetuated. Helpful talking points can be found at the Heritage Foundation, the National Organization for Marriage, Alliance Defending Freedom, Christian Medical Comment, the Ruth Institute, and CrossExamined.

In addition to speaking out whenever we can, we must also remember that the Supreme Court will not able to solve the marriage problem in America. Don’t get me wrong. What they decide in these two cases is extremely important. Still, if traditional marriage is upheld legally, marriage as an institution is still collapsing around us practically. Cohabitation is on the rise, divorce is normal, and the birthrate continues to dive.

So, it’s important that we ask: what else can we do? [ITEMS FOR PRAYER]:

1. Churches need to educate their congregation on what marriage is. It’s stunning to me how many Christians think marriage is primarily about personal happiness. It’s not. And once we embrace that false notion, the institution has already been dangerously redefined.
2. Churches need to surround young couples preparing for marriage with older couples who can mentor them. The benefits here will be mutual.
3. We need to pray for government officials, including the Supreme Court, in this particular area. There will be other challenges regardless of how these two decisions turn out.
4. We need to stay married. Period. Christians need to embrace that marriage is bigger than couples, bigger than personal happiness, bigger than we think. Marriage is how God builds and rebuilds civilizations. It’s really that serious.("The Good of Marriage" (http://www.summit.org/media/journal/2012-02_Summit_Journal-WEB.pdf; this is a 21 pp. article)

We need to financially support a broad range of organizations and ministries that are working to rebuild the personal, social, legal, and cultural status of marriage. The victory will be won only when Americans have, in the words of Dr. Jennifer Roback Morse, “embraced the beauty of lifelong married love.”

#383 (12/11) - Another Example of Why "Taxing the Wealthy" REALLY Doesn't Work

PRAYER REQUEST: PRAY that whatever the result of the negotiations going on about the "fisical cliff" facing the economy at the end of the year, it will result in the least harm being done especially to those most struggling. Also, PRAY that lawmakers will have the wisdom and courage to make a decision based on not just what is best for America in the short term but also in the long term.

"Lesson From UK: Tax Hike on Wealthy Lowers Revenue," Dec. 9; http://news.newsmax.com/?Z6I6Xbn7ufFfjQOO9bvHKDu1vQyztLU1Z

One side wants to rein in entitlements to deal with the budget deficit. The other side insists that any such moves be accompanied by higher taxes on the wealthy. That may sound like the ongoing fiscal battle in Washington, but actually describes the situation in Britain.

The difference is that Britain has already raised taxes on the wealthy, with a telling result: The government actually lost revenue.

In the 2009-2010 tax year in Britain, more than 16,000 people reported annual income of more than 1 million pounds (equal to about $1.6 million today). Then in 2010, Prime Minister Gordon Brown, a member of the Labour Party, introduced a new 50 percent top income tax rate for high-income earners. After that, the number of people reporting income of at least 1 million pounds fell to 6,000. “It is believed that rich Britons moved abroad or took steps to avoid paying the new levy by reducing their taxable incomes,” The Telegraph reported.

Harriet Baldwin, a Conservative member of Parliament, said: “Labour’s ideological tax hike led to a tax cull of millionaires.” Instead of raising revenue, the tax hike cost the U.K. 7 billion pounds ($11.2 billion) in lost revenue — and that in an economy one-quarter the size of America’s.

Now the government of Conservative Party Prime Minister David Cameron has announced that it will lower the top rate from 50 percent to 45 percent, a move the Labour Party officials have called a “tax cut for millionaires.” [Sound familiar?] In ongoing budget talks, Conservatives want to freeze out-of-work benefits [unemployment benefits], which are set to rise with inflation, while liberals in the government “will only allow the benefits freeze if taxes on the rich are increased,” according to The Telegraph.

Democrats in the United States might note that since Cameron’s government announced the lower top rate, the number of Britons reporting income of at least 1 million pounds has risen to 10,000.        
-----------------------------------------------------------
"Myths of Tax Cuts for Rich, Spending Cuts for Poor" - By Brian M. Riedl, May 3, 2011, http://www.heritage.org/research/commentary/2011/05/myths-of-tax-cuts-for-rich-spending-cuts-for-poor

"...The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office reports that the richest 20 percent of taxpayers now shoulder a record 86 percent of the federal income tax burden. This is substantially higher than when Ronald Reagan took office (64 percent) and even higher than when George W. Bush took office (81 percent)...

The flip side of the “tax cuts for the rich” mantra has been “spending cuts for the poor.” Again, the official government data flatly contradict the conventional wisdom. According to the White House’s Office of Management and Budget, federal anti-poverty spending has soared from $190 billion in 1990 to $348 billion in 2000, and to a staggering $638 billion this year [2011] (all adjusted for inflation). The growth since 2000 has been particularly remarkable in the Children’s Health Insurance Program (470 percent), food stamps (229 percent), energy assistance (163 percent), child care assistance (89 percent) and Medicaid (80 percent).

These expansions have been bipartisan: Mr. Bush — unfairly derided as bad for poor people — became the first president to spend more than 3 percent of the nation’s income on anti-poverty programs. President Obama then pushed it above 4 percent. In fact, since 1990, anti-poverty spending as a share of national income has expanded as fast as Social Security, Medicare, defense and education — combined.

So why the perceived “spending cuts for the poor”? Because anti-poverty spending increases (as large as $60 billion annually) occur automatically, and therefore go largely unnoticed. Yet any lawmaker proposing to shave even $1 billion off that growth is loudly attacked for “declaring war” on the safety net.  Missing is any broader context. Also missing is serious engagement with Robert Rector’s research displaying the ineffectiveness of much of this spending.

Washington faces enormous budgetary problems, including trillion-dollar deficits and the exploding costs of Social Security and Medicare. A lack of redistribution of wealth from the rich to the poor is not one of those problems.

[bold and italics emphasis mine]

Brian Riedl is the Grover M. Hermann fellow in federal budgetary affairs at the Heritage Foundation.

[Note: I found the link to the above article in Glenn Beck's latest book, "Cowards" which I highly recommend.(It should be available in your public library as it was in mine.]

#382 (12/10) - ''Homeschoolers Lobby, UN Disabilities Treaty Fails''

NOTE: Just because you may not homeschool yourself or know those who do OR do not know anyone with disabilities, the fact that an international body, the UN, seeks to make decisions for parents anywhere in the world should itself alarm you. The move that was almost approved by the U.S. Senate is another example of treaties that America has been close to signing on to in the past few decades which in the end threaten our sovereignty and the freedom of our cittizens. (Note that this treaty got NO attention in the mainstream media that was more interested in the announced pregnancy of Prince William's  wife Kate!)

PRAYER REQUEST: PRAY that Senators who see the danger of the U.S. being drawn into such international treaties that effectively strip it and/or its citizens of their freedoms will continue to actively oppose such efforts, and that Americans themselves will stay alert and speak out as well.

By: Hope Hodge 12/4/2012

http://www.humanevents.com/2012/12/04/after-homeschoolers-lobby-un-disabilities-treaty-fails/

A United Nations human rights treaty that drew broad ire from conservative groups was rejected by a slender margin on the Senate floor [last]Tuesday afternoon. The vote was 61 for to 31 against, six “aye” votes shy of the two-thirds majority necessary to pass a treaty.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities ostensibly would have expanded access and opportunity for the disabled. But opponents, particularly those in homeschooling and faith-based organizations, argued that it redefined parental rights more narrowly while impinging on U.S. sovereignty. In a floor speech Tuesday morning, Democratic Sen. Christopher Coons (Del.) acknowledged his office had been barraged with calls from homeschooled families in his district urging him to vote against the treaty, although he dismissed the calls as stemming from scare tactics and said he still planned a “yes” vote.

The director of Federal Relations for the Homeschool Legal Defense Association, Will Estrada, said turnout from the organization to lobby against the treaty had been historic. “I think the homeschool movement was more mobilized on this issue than any issue in the last decade,” Estrada said, noting that a large population of homeschooling families had at least one child with a disability.

“They realized this wasn’t about disabilities issue, this was about who was going to make decisions for children with disabilities,” he said. According to HSLDA records, member families sent anywhere from 8,000 to 20,000 letters and emails to lawmakers, urging them to oppose the treaty.The odds were already stacked against the Democrats for the treaty’s passage: months ago, 36 Republicans signed on to a letter saying they would oppose the consideration of any treaty during the lame duck session, out of deference to new members who should be given a chance to consider such weighty and binding matters. But Democrats may have seen this lame duck session as a last opportunity to pass measures requiring significant Republican support before the Senate welcomes a new class that includes staunch conservatives such as Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas).

Some fear Senate Democrats may move next to pass the even more controversial Law of the Sea Treaty, though failure to pass the disabilities treaty may discourage such efforts. Estrada said the next battle for homeschool families will be a fight against the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which also negatively redefines parental rights.
“(The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities) was a test vote for other treaties,” he said.

Here are some statements from opponents on what the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities would have done:

“The question is, who should make critical decisions regarding the care and raising of children who have disabilities? Their parents or United Nations social workers? “There is no need for the CRPD, as our nation’s state and federal laws already protect our precious loved ones with disabilities. It is outrageous that U.S. senators would support a treaty that surrenders U.S. sovereignty and family integrity to unelected UN bureaucrats.” -J. Michael Smith, President of the Homeschool Legal Defense Association. 

“Americans should be the ones making laws for America. If improvements are needed to the laws, that already are the leading examples of providing freedom and justice for persons with disabilities, this will open the door for infringing upon our sovereignty by subjecting the United States to foreign, anti-American biases.”
-Penny Young Nance, CEO of Concerned Women for America Legislative Action Committee.

“With the admittedly hurried passage of the Affordable Care Act and other similar pieces of legislation we have seen that there are those in Congress who have little problem with passing laws only to find out what’s in them later. But I was not elected to pass as many pieces of legislation as possible. I was elected to pass legislation that directly benefits my constituents in Utah and the people of the United States while protecting their freedoms and unalienable rights as citizens.” -Sen. Mike Lee, (R-Utah)

“It is not something which the United States needs to sign on to, but there is a great emotional case being made that we need to do this. I think it’s a great opportunity to talk about trans-national law, and how there is an insidious and dedicated movement to attack U.S. sovereignty.” -Sen. Jon Kyl, (R-Ariz.)

[bold and italics emhasis mine]

#381 (12/9) - SUNDAY SPECIAL - Lessons from "...A Wonderful Life"

NOTE: (1) I must admit that I skipped watching the recent broadcast of "It's a Wonderful Life" because I've seen it so many times I could replay it scene by scene from memory. But reading the article below gave me a new appreciation of that film. It reminds me to look for and appreciate more the Biblical values presented by films even when they are not pointedly "Christian."; (2) As always, in  Central Florida, I encouage you to watch this week's  broadcast of "Truth That Transforms" (Today at 5 pm, channel 55.1; Monday at 7 pm, channel 52.2) or watch the sermon portion at www.truthinaction.org; and (3) Please lift up the prayer request at the end.

"It's a Wonderful Life" - 52 Life Lessons > Breakpoint.org; by Eric Metaxas; December 05, 2012

One of Chuck Colson's favorite films was “It's a Wonderful Life.” I love the film, too: Everything from Zuzu's petals to “Clarence! Get me back to my wife and kids!” We can find a lot of great life lessons in that film if we try to.

Someone who did exactly that is journalist Bob Welch. He just wrote a book titled “Fifty-Two Little Lessons from It's a Wonderful Life”--one lesson for every week of the year. For instance, Welch points out that the film has a lot to say about grace—that is, unmerited favor. We see it right at the beginning, when Mr. Gower, the druggist, slaps a young George Bailey on the ear so hard that it starts bleeding. But George forgives him; he knows Mr. Gower has just received word that his son has died.

And then there's the scene where George and Mary are leaving on their honeymoon, and they witness the run on the bank. Old man Potter is offering fifty cents on the dollar, and many people are tempted to take him up on it. But George does his best to convince the townspeople that that they should keep their money at the Bailey Building and Loan. As Welch notes, “George suggests that one reason to do so is that the Baileys believe in grace and Potter doesn't.”

“Here, Ed,” George says to one of his neighbors. “You remember last year when things weren't going so well, and you couldn't make your payments? You didn't lose your house, did you? Do you think Potter would have let you keep it?” Of course not. Old man Potter doesn't do “grace.”

And then there's the matter of that missing $8,000 which Uncle Billy loses on Christmas Eve. While it's true George grabs Uncle Billy and shouts at him, in the end, he ultimately extends grace as well. When George goes to Mr. Potter asking for help, George takes the blame: He says HE's the one who misplaced the money.

George's wife, Mary Bailey, also excels at the grace business. Remember, George comes home from work on Christmas Eve, yells at his wife and kids, insults Zuzu's teacher over the phone, and trashes the living room. Mary has a right to be furious—but instead, she forgives George, tells the children to pray for daddy, and goes out to ask the town for help replacing that $8,000.

Grace, Welch reminds us, “is the foundation of the Christian faith. Jesus' granting us grace by forgiving our sins flies in the face of virtually every other religion, which operates on a you-get-what-you-deserve basis. But Jesus says, in essence, you don't get what you deserve. You get what you don't deserve.”

The willingness to live by grace: That's part of what makes Bedford Falls such a great place to live.

What other life lessons do we find in Welch's book? That we should stop to count our blessings. That richness is not about money, but about the people in our lives. That our actions make a difference because, as the Angel Clarence reminds George, each man's life touches so many other lives.

So here's a suggestion: Buy a copy of “Fifty-two Little Lesson from It's a Wonderful Life,” and use it for your family's Advent readings this year. You can purchase a copy through our online book store at BreakPoint.org.  And of course, don't forget to sit down and watch Frank Capra's great classic film. That's what I'm going to be doing with my family...

[bold and most italics and underline emphasis mine]

PRAYER REQUEST: PRAY that Hollywood might finally recognize that films that celebrate traditional values continue to draw the most consistent consumers and that they will make more such films. PRAY that more and more Americans might be discerning about and choose to only support with their entertainment dollars those movies that promote Philippian 4:8 values.