We may never know exactly why pain and suffering occur. God’s children have experienced much sorrow since the beginning of creation. We are constantly reminded that there is more than ourselves, more than the right now. Recent tragedies have brought people together in prayer and resolve. For those that we have lost, and those currently experiencing difficult times, let us all remember that each day, each moment, is a Blessing from God. In every interaction, conversation, and human contact, we can take away love and God’s Grace. As humans, we will all make mistakes and sin. As God’s children we need to come together in prayer and never forget why we were given the opportunity to love those we have lost and help those that we still can. God will never leave us; we need to never leave Him.

Prejudice, Race Relations and Racism, are all words that have been used quite a bit over the past 8 years. Did electing the first Black President increase or decrease the problems and concerns our country has? Every citizen will have their own opinion and in each case, their opinion is true to them. No one can truly walk in another’s shoes and know exactly what they feel, or fear as the case may be. As a White male, I can never truly feel what someone with Black skin may think or worry about regarding their day-to-day life and their history. In addition, I can never truly feel what those of Hispanic, or Native American, or Asian descent etc. may feel regarding their heritage and everyday worries. I also don’t expect a non-White person to truly understand what it feels like to worry about being thought of as a racist just because I am White. I was accused of a racist comment while in college which could have cost me my job and suspension from the university and took 3 months to finally get the accuser to admit that she lied in order to stay in good graces with her boyfriend. As a high school teacher I was punched by a student’s mother because she thought I was unfair to her son. I was asked by the superintendent to not pursue it because the school district did not want the bad publicity of a Black Woman hitting a White Teacher. The mother admitted in court what she did and received probation.  All of us have our own stories. We all have our fears, our worries and our stresses. All people will share similar anxiety such as taking care of children and staying healthy and then we have different thoughts based on our faith, heritage, skin color and other traits that make each of us unique. Our government, the media and everyone else that seems to add fuel to the hot issue will not solve this or change people’s attitudes. The protests, and tragically the killing of innocent people including those that are trying to serve and protect us, certainly will not help people come together. The results are just the opposite. For all those that spoke hateful words regarding an entire profession because of the actions of a few, your silence is shameful. The “talking heads” in the media and anyone else with a platform need to be shouting at the top of your lungs to stop this senseless killing. Police Officers serve and protect ALL People.  Progress needs to start in the neighborhoods, in the churches, in the communities. When people talk, worship, work, and play together the differences and fears of each other become less and less. All we have to do is look at young children. When kids play together it is without the worry or fear of what the other person looks like, sounds like, or what church they worship at. It is when we start to get older and listen to hate speech, see tragedies, and start to look for reasons to not like or trust someone first, before we even know them based on how they look , sound or worship, divisions start to grow. All people are born with love in their heart. We learn to hate, fear, and not trust others based on assumptions that all individuals in a certain category act alike. Whatever our skin color, faith, heritage and profession, we must learn to close our eyes, and open our hearts to ALL of God’s Children.

As I watched the reaction to the Supreme Court decision today regarding the Texas Law and the Abortion clinics I felt sick to my stomach. It was not just the fact that I am Pro-Life…but the fact that people were dancing, cheering, jumping up and down..as if they just won the Super Bowl or the lottery..When it comes to women making that choice, there are No Winners…Abortion is not a game, not a choice like picking out furniture or buying a car….unfortunately many will use their Abortion “choice” as a form of birth control or to not inconvenience their lives…the very sad part is some of these moral, ethical decisions are decided by 8 or 9 people and in this case 5 thought the law was unconstitutional while 3 did not..and the celebrations began… the whole issue of Abortion, of Life of Children and of Women who struggle with the thoughts of what to do when faced with an unwanted pregnancy is not something to celebrate but rather something to pray about…. Lawyers sitting on a bench cannot determine what is moral, what is ethical and what is a right given to ALL human beings by GOD…and that is LIFE… There will always be those that think Abortion is perfectly fine..those that may have some limitations and others, like myself, that believe it is NEVER ok…each Human Life has a right to exist…but the issue of Abortion itself should always be looked upon as a serious issue, with consequences for the woman, for the man, for the extended family and of course for the victim that never gets a chance at life… Abortions affect many people and in the end, society..so I say to all of you that felt like dancing, cheering and partying because of a decision of five people today…”May God look out for you and give you the wisdom to appreciate Life and even if you always feel that a woman should be able to make this choice….at least understand that ending a life, no matter how or why..is never a reason to celebrate.”

Let’s look at what is really needed in a Presidential Candidate.  As our Country faces many challenges ahead both domestically and internationally, what kind of person should we have occupying the White House? To start with, I would like to see a person who is a President to ALL citizens..regardless of political affiliation. We should never have a President talk about ½ the country (opposing party, different race, different gender, different faith etc.)  as enemies or other derogatory names… our enemies are terrorists and people that want to destroy America. We need a leader who is Strong in their beliefs but understanding of those that differ. We need a leader who can work with those that think differently but lead towards common ground and is also not afraid to stand strong on certain beliefs which make up the foundation of who they are. We need a leader who is strong enough to admit they may have made a mistake or could have done/said something better or in a different way. A good leader surrounds themselves with those that have knowledge/skills that they do not. We do Not need a leader that only hires and appoints “Yes” men. That only shows EGO and not good for the Country.  We need a leader who believes in a Strong Military…we CANNOT negotiate/discuss our way to peace with those that want to destroy democracy. We need a leader that believes in the Constitution…it is really not that difficult of a document to understand..it was written for the People..not for politicians/judges to interpret and change based on party platform/personal agendas.  There are other characteristics I would like to see but to me the most important is one who has faith.  A President needs to be strong in their faith in GOD… (if this offends some, too bad)..The majority of Americans believe in GOD, religions may differ but the majority believe in the same One, True, GOD….The President needs to be a leader in making sure Faith in God is applauded and not shunned.  For those that Do not Believe, we all have the responsibility to show them why God is with us but we should never remove GOD from our country no matter what. The President should be a person who is admired for who they are as a person, not for their gender, color, party, bank account, sound bites, or other reasons why some seem to be elected. I pray that as the political process continues towards the 2016 Election we can remove all the Noise and elect a leader that truly represents what America stands for.

The Videos concerning Planned Parenthood have allowed the Discussion of Abortion to be brought back up.. it always seems it is mentioned around election time but dropped soon after the candidate says where they stand without further discussion. Seems 1973 was a lifetime ago when a vote of 7-2 changed the course of American history. A 3 vote swing the other direction would have put a different stamp on what America looks like.  At the least, who knows what the millions of lives that never had a chance to live could have accomplished. The discussion of Pro-Life v. Pro-Choice seems very political and almost simple in that it is easy for people to state their side and be done.  The real issue is, “Are you Pro-GOD or not?”  A simple question would be, if you believe in God, “How can you purposely end a life that God creates?”  Abortion is about ending a life, it does not matter if the baby can live outside of the mother or has a heart that beats on its own yet. The life is a creation of GOD, not an animal but a human being creation. It is time to have the discussion again. I will be glad to discuss with any politician, candidate, neighbor, anyone on why Abortion is against God.  If you don’t believe in GOD, not much to talk about.  The majority of Americans claim they believe GOD. True belief in our Creator is not when it is convenient, or only if it does not cause financial hardship or a life change to a person. If you are PRO-GOD then Abortion would not even be a question. God Creates Life, a person should not be the one who determines if God’s creation should be stopped.  So the Labels should really be Pro-GOD or Pro-Self.

The upcoming debates with both parties are going to be nothing more than the same old story. We will hear the same answers that we have heard on all the talk shows, social media and the web. The host of the debates will try to get a “Gotcha” moment to make a headline. The candidates will try to trip each other up but with all the instant media we pretty much know where the candidates stand on most issues..This is what I propose.

Let’s just get to the bottom line. I would ask the following.  “Do you believe in God and do you think God’s teachings should be what guides our country?”

I hope at least a few would have the guts to say “Yes they do” without worrying about offending anyone or missing out on someone’s votes. Then the rest of the debate can be spent on hearing “How” they are going to do this. God should be the main theme, not a taboo subject.

We have a lot of issues in this country. If we put God first, the solutions will become obvious. The debate will then be are we strong enough to listen to God’s words or are we, as a society, going to be like historical Egypt, Rome or Greece, and other societies and think we are going to last forever only to fall as they did by going against God’s wisdom.   For those that want to argue “Separation of Church and State”, understand what that really means… The Federal Gov’t cannot establish a religion but it does not prevent the ability to worship God. We came from God, and we need to let God back into our Country.

Ok Candidates, let’s see who really has the strength to put God First and help our Country get back on track.

I am disgusted. It is no secret that I do not believe in abortion. I understand there are those that think differently, including friends of mine. I still love and respect them and I am always available and willing to have a civil discussion on the topic with anyone. What disgusts me is this. The number one abortion center in America (Planned Parenthood), which does between 30% – 40% of all Abortions each year, promotes lies.  On their own website this is what they say about women who may be thinking about an abortion.

“Serious, long-term emotional problems after abortion are about as uncommon as they are after giving birth. They are more likely to happen for certain reasons-for instance, if a woman has a history of emotional problems before the abortion. Ultimately, most women feel relief after an abortion.”

Basically they are telling women that unless you had a history of emotional problems prior to being pregnant you will probably have no emotional issues after..and you will be relieved. Consider this, Planned Parenthood performed over 325,000 Abortions last year (or about 37 per hour, 1 every 95 seconds…) I live in Denton TX with a Population of 123,000.  Planned Parenthood helped end the lives of 2.5 times the population of my city in one year. I do not have to be a woman to know that the statements from Planned Parenthood are lies. Most women who have had abortions, regardless of their thoughts on the morality of them, will have emotions regarding them…many will never forget, nor will they ever stop wondering what if…What if that baby was born? What would they be like? What would they look like? What joy would that baby have brought to the world?…some will carry guilt, have depression, etc.

Another section of the Planned Parenthood website says this:

..”But parents often give up a lot for their children.  Meeting a child’s needs can be very challenging. Parents deal with less sleep and less time to do the things they need and want to do.  Having a baby is expensive, and many people find it hard to support their children.  Having children can also put a parent’s school plans on hold.  Many people find that having a child can test the strongest relationship. And if you are single parenting, you may find it more difficult to find and keep a relationship.”

Millions of tax dollars goes to this organization that promotes lies and makes it very easy for a woman who is considering an abortion to move forward. So according to Planned Parenthood an abortion will not cause any emotional issues, and will save the mother a lot of money, not inconvenience them and help them stay in or find a relationship.

If our gov’t continues to support organizations like this that promote abortions because of reasons including financial burdens on individuals and society we may as well call ourselves China…

Certainly glad Mary and Joseph didn’t think their baby was going to be a financial burden or inconvenience to them.

God Help Us!

Children are a gift of the Lord

Psalm 127:3

What we take to Heaven is not going to be in a U-Haul. Cherish our Blessings and what is Really Important.

I did not pay to watch the fight last night between Mayweather vs Pacquiao, did not see the rationale in spending $99 for pay-per-view, but plenty of people did.  It is projected that between the two fighters they will earn a combined total of $180,000,000.  Whether it is a fighter, an athlete, an actor or any other profession whose income is determined by the willingness of people to watch them perform, I say fantastic. That is Capitalism and how a free society is supposed to work.  Everyone should have the ability to earn what they can if people are willing to pay for it.

The Federal Government should receive about 72 Million in Taxes if all the rules are followed. The fighters will keep a nice sum and the government should also receive a nice sum for one evening of work. If our Tax system is going to work and our government is going to earn back the trust of our citizens then here is a wild crazy thought.  Pick a city, any city..even Baltimore that is going through lots of tension and unrest.  Pick any city in the country that has a homeless, unemployment situation.  Of the 72 Million in taxes a facility can be built to house homeless, especially those with children.  Use 50 million to build the facility and put the other 22 million in the bank.  At 3% interest 22 million will earn $360,000 a year. So what can this accomplish? We could have a major city that no longer has Homeless or Hungry Children. Or at least reduce it by a huge amount.  The interest every year can support a staff, the operation of the facility and programs to teach and re-train those that want to get off welfare and earn for themselves. The problem is we don’t have politicians that look at the big picture just the same thought process over and over.

Just think, between other fights or events that generate big income/taxes how much of this country’s domestic problems can be fixed..if only we had a Gov’t that was responsible with money…we can only hope.