A Nation In Distress - Nov 30

Below is the very lovely Keira Knightly as Elizabeth Swann in 'Pirates of the Caribbean'.


If there's one thing I've learnt in my Christian walk is not to be afraid of either personal or geopolitical events taking place. God is in control, and He uses all things for His glory. The same God who places a righteous man in office is the same God who installs tyrants. I like to call it 'the mystery of history'. I've noticed recently the irreversible and accelerating slide towards the end of the age. I'd still feel the same way even if John McCain were elected president. All that would've achieved is to buy us some time. Yet the end result would still be the same.

There's Nothing To Fear But Fear Itself!

It's not Obama that concerns me, it's his followers. As I see it, the system guarantees disappointment. Many black Christian supporters will be less than enthralled as gay marriage moves to the front pages. The possibility of American military action against Somali pirates will cause black Christians grief as well. The pacifists will be horrified as American troops move from Iraq into the quagmire that is Afghanistan. Christian Zionists who voted Democrat will see more nonsensical 'Land for Peace' deals placing Israel in greater peril. Will Obama secure America's southern flank, disappointing the Latino vote? To hear from all these Kool-Aid Utopians, on January 20, 2009, America will be delivered from the Devil himself. On the contrary, it will be more like going from the proverbial frying pan into the fire.

America is a Mess (and there's little we can do about it)

If America cannot be found in Bible prophecy, what does that tell us? A nation that consumes more than it exports and whose citizens save nothing are destined for rocky shoals. I want to be clear on this. I don't wish to drag the new guy down. But there are some hard realities that need to be faced. The standard by where we are headed must be God's Word. It is considered an absolute amongst humanists that we can (if only we truly believe!), pull ourselves out of this mess through our own man-centered efforts. Yet the Bible paints a much darker picture:

At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.
(Matthew 24:10-13)

I think its one of the greatest lies ever conceived. If all the 'isms' of the world have not brought us peace, why should we expect anything different? It's the very definition of madness: Doing the same thing over and over again hoping for a different result. I think the very reason why the humanist school of thought is so seductive is because of our pride.

Man's Most Prized Possession Is.....

For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.
(2 Timothy 4:3-4)

His overwhelming sense of self-importance. And what are the people's treasure? Their biases, their assumptions, their cultural norms and of course, their sensuality and common sense. None of it does us a bit of good if it keeps us from God. Ignorance and apathy is our lot. Civilization is walking the plank and few seem to notice or care.

A Surefire Antidote: Faith and Courage

If trials are to come upon us, what tools do we have at our disposal? The courage to believe in a living God will surely be our most effective testimony. I think many Christians will rue the fact that they failed to capitalize on this unique time in history. Should we become disconsolate and afraid? No, we must not be afraid. We should stand for what we believe in, no matter what the cost.

Johnny Cash

A Piece of Crap - Nov 21

I have a funny story to tell. Today as I was on my rounds in Newmarket I went into a Price Chopper (Leslie and Davis) store to buy a can opener (not the one pictured above). It was selling for a dollar so I bought it. I left it in the trunk of my car for about two and a half hours before I got it home. When I arrived at Casa Johnny, I went to open a can of apple juice using my new opener and the the thing promptly broke apart. No injury to report but I looked at this piece of crap in my hand and started to laugh. 'Figures', I said, 'You get what you paid for'. Turns out the cheap plastic handles were glued to the metal. As well, the metal itself was brittle to the point where I could bend and break off the lower handle. My one-piece can opener had disintegrated into three inoperable pieces in a matter of minutes. Here's the kicker: Made in China. Later on, I went to the local grocery store to pick up a replacement. Guess what? The exact same can opener was on sale there too! I decided I wasn't going to fall for the same trick twice so I kept looking. Two aisles over I found it. It was beautiful. All metal (with no plastic) and 'Made in England' to boot. Grabbed it and paid $3 for it. There appears to be a few lessons here:

I Hate Getting Ripped Off

Doesn't everybody? I mean, it was only a dollar (plus applicable taxes) right? I felt like a fool for buying such an inferior product. A company ought to stand by their product through thick and thin. In China, keeping the people employed is seen as the highest goal. Other business virtues such as quality assurance, efficiency, profitability and transparency (the enemy of corruption) are therefore relegated. If you have an inferior product, be it made in China or anywhere else, and it breaks on you well before it should - like on the first try for instance - you should go back to the place you bought it and ask to speak to a manager. In a polite tone, tell him (or her) your tale of woe and ask them to remove that product from their shelves. It is impossible for any store to vigorously check each and every item. They lack both the manpower and time to do so. In so doing, your complaint does them a huge favor. An inferior product is removed from circulation and future customers aren't inconvenienced by shoddy craftmanship. That's how a free market works. Individuals show the way, not government hacks or middle men who only care about their cut of the profits.

Entropy Is Very Much A Biblical Concept

Where are all these scoffers that tell us that science and Christianity are irreconcilable? Hogwash! The Second Law of Thermodynamics can be found here:

We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.
(Romans 8:22-23)

That is, things - and people - get run down, get tired, break down and sometimes just flat out fail us. Ever owned a car or truck for an extended period of time? The brakes need fixing. The tires need changing. The battery could die at a most unexpected time. The muffler could be rusty and in need of replacement. The list goes on. So while we put up with life's little breakdowns, be they expensive or cheap, it's clear this world is in a state of terminal decay. Yet when we look at this marvelous passage of scripture we are given hope for a bright future. The passage reveals an inward groaning but ends in our glorious redemption. It's amazing how a simple can opener can show the way to God's truth when we're willing to listen!

Johnny Cash

A Pig For Christmas - Nov 15

How about a pig for Christmas? Or a goat? Sounds like some cheesy game show doesn't it? In places like India a pig or goat means having a continual source of income and the ability to put food on the table. Please give and help a family in need.

Johnny Cash

Nothing New Under The Sun - Nov 9

As it was in King Solomon's day, the same can be said today:

What has been will be again,
what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun.

Is there anything of which one can say,
"Look! This is something new"?
It was here already, long ago;
it was here before our time.
(Ecclesiastes 1:9-10)

What the Election of Barack Obama Really Means

To me, it didn't really matter all that much. I was so overcome with emotion that I yawned, turned off the TV and went to bed, secure in the knowledge that the sun would rise again. As a Canadian-born white guy with a proud English heritage, I can tell you I was pretty much underwhelmed. But I think it's important to realize how much it meant to blacks. The election of BHO wasn't merely a changing of the guard, it was seen as a revolutionary act. Like I said, I tend to be a bit jaded by all this. But I do think it's very important that whites don't act dismissively. I believe the racial divide in America is alive and well, despite the fresh blood being injected into the body politic. Whites refuse to acknowledge the harm they've done and many blacks still carry a torch for slavery reparations. If someone wrongs you, repents and asks for forgiveness and is refused, what's a man to do? Jesus said you should grant and seek forgiveness before making sacrifices at the temple. In other words, confess all your sins and pray one for another. How simple. How beautiful. Yet this prescription will never be filled, leaving me pessimistic about future race relations.

Some Perspective Please!

I loved this Wesley Pruden comment from the Washington Times:

This election will be remembered as the campaign that ignited a religious revival. Never have so many atheists, skeptics, agnostics, secularists, heretics, freethinkers and rationalists hit the sawdust trail to imbibe so much on blind faith, and to make it their religion. Eat your heart out, Billy Graham.

That's the great thing about politics. You will never suffer for lack of material. Or people to mock and ridicule. Again, as with my previous post, none of this is meant as a personal attack against those who voted for the man. Far from it. On the contrary, I wish to engage those who take a more 'progressive' (read: socialist) view of things. I don't want to alienate anyone. But I do want to show the secularists the error of their ways. Let's be crystal clear on this: The secularists would love nothing more than to banish us evangelicals to some distant land, never to be heard from again. I believe this anti-God worldview is going to dominate like never before.

A Checklist Every President Should Adhere To

I wish nothing but the best for the new president. The foreign policy challenges are immense, but not impossible to overcome. Let's start with Israel. Despite the urgings of the Left, do not under any circumstances divide Israel's land. Ariel Sharon paid for giving away Gush Katif (Gaza) with an incapacitating stroke. I fear worse things will happen to Obama if he tries to negotiate away Judea and Samaria (the West Bank). Israel has many enemies, Russia being chief amongst them. Recent moves in Libya confirm this. Do not be afraid to confront them and call their bluff if necessary.

Restore consumer confidence. Easier said than done I know, but this will make the difference from being a one-term president to a two-term one. A far-left policy of 'economic justice' would put America into a depression, never mind a recession. Re-engineering a free and open society is the last thing you should attempt.

Lastly, respect God's laws. A nation that willfully disobeys His ways is a nation that is destined for destruction. You serve a God for His purpose and at His pleasure. The God that delivered you victory on election night is the same one who can bring you down to defeat. President Obama, you are both a husband and a father. Don't place marriage and family on the altar of expediency in order to prove some obscure point.

Johnny Cash

All In Good Fun - Nov 8

Post election fever can be a bummer. This funny video comes from the Onion News Network. Hope you get a good laugh as much as I did.

Johnny Cash

An Avalanche of History - Nov 4

Well, I managed to survive my move over the weekend. Six full truckloads over three days just about killed me. Glad it's over though. The X-Def lives on!

Barack Obama as President

Get used to it for at least the next four years. Possibly eight. Yikes! Here's what I think what happened over the past two years. John McCain lost this election not because he wasn't suitable or ready, but due to hubris. He's basically running as a member of Dubya's Republicans as opposed to running on his own name. The GOP ran out of luck and out of time to correct their mistakes. To be sure, many of the wounds inflicted were of the self-inflicted variety.

The 2003 War In Iraq

Irrational exuberance combined with underestimating the resolve of the enemy guaranteed that no lightning victory would occur. The Bush doctrine, which put forth the idea that free and democratic countries don't start wars, was correct on the strategic level. Lack of discernment hobbled the Iraq and Afghanistan efforts from the start.

McCain's Sisyphean Struggle

Sisyphus was the poor sod doomed to roll a massive rock uphill everyday for eternity. The media was in Obama's pocket from the get-go. Hard to get your message out when no-one wants to co-operate. To be sure, media liberals outnumbered conservative thinkers even in Reagan's day. Still, the Great Communicator managed and led. I think however that Reagan's America is vastly different than the one Bush 43 presided over. Prayer and attending church on Sundays were a given. Today, when a believer mentions God people look at them like they talk to an invisible man in the sky. Marriage was always between a man and a woman. Life began at conception and that was that. Sure there was sin in America in Reagan's day. But we didn't advertise and brag about it, did we? It isn't the demographic shift that should worry us, it's the moral shift away from Biblical values that will pose problems for America.

Swimming with Sharks

What's next? The next president faces immense challenges. Will Russia, with its increasing move towards sovietism, make a move? How about Iran? So many questions. I have a feeling that we'll soon find out. President Obama will be tested, let there be no doubt about that. In the meantime, do pray over President Obama. He'll need God's protection and all of His wisdom to guide a very difficult and complex country.

God Bless America!

Johnny Cash