Woah there, Joanie, I really don't think we're nearing the Apocolypse!! There are ample opportunities fer optimism, my FRiend!!
"The Israelites were made to wander not because that journey required forty years to physically complete, but as a punishment for those who refused to enter the Promised Land when they first had the chance to do so. They were caused to wander aimlessly until all of the disobedient, dishonest and cowardly ones of adult age had died off."
Thank the internet, mi hermana, it is increasingly difficult to plead IGNORANCE as to the present goings'on. The Lord woreks thru each of US and there is no reason to call fer Pestilence or Plague, we can educate the Masses!! We have the Power to expose our brethren to the Truth!! However, to be successful, we need to believe in the worthiness of Our Cause, and cvan NEVER doubt its ultimate success!!
"Just recently, during the funeral services for Ronald Reagan held at the National Cathedral, Justice O’Connor read an excerpt from John Winthrop’s City Upon a Hill (I have also used Winthrop’s City Upon a Hill sermon/essay as a reference in a few Sunday school classes that I have taught). Although penned almost four hundred years ago, I believe Winthrop’s observations and warnings should be taken seriously."
"Now the only way to avoid this shipwreck and to provide for our posterity is to follow the counsel of Micah -- to do justly, to love mercy, to walk humbly with our God. For this end, we must be knit together in this work as one man. We must entertain each other in brotherly affection. We must be willing to abridge ourselves of our superfluities, for the supply of others’ necessities. We must uphold a familiar commerce together in all meekness, gentleness, patience and liberality. We must delight in each other, make others’ conditions our own -- rejoice together, mourn together, labor, and suffer together -- always having before our eyes our commission and community in the work, our community as members of the same body."
Sounds like a dandy plan, joanie (and Justic O'Connor)...
"So shall we keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace. The Lord will be our God and delight to dwell among us, as His own people, and will command a blessing upon us in all our ways, so that we shall see much more of His wisdom power goodness and truth than formerly we have been acquainted with."
Once again, I am with you, even if I somehow mistakenly believe that Allah=God!! (FBD...that's fer you.)
"We shall find that the God of Israel is among us, when ten of us shall be able to resist a thousand of our enemies … when He shall make us a praise and glory, that men shall say of succeeding plantations: Lord, make it like that of New England. For we must consider that we shall be as a City upon a Hill.
God Bless Ronald Reagan...God Bless the United States of America!!
FReegards...MUD
Since the first night of this journey,
I been FReepin' 'cuz it is Right!!
Had my plans fer words and threads and dreams...
Formed a Band...I harp and sing!!
The first thing yer taught is "Don't LIE Like a Rug!!"
'Cuz yer lies bring you down!!
We FReep Kerry 'cuz Hanoi John LIED!!
Boy, Beware yer LustFerPower!!
I seen me a Lib'ral and "Lurch" was his name...
Kerry LIED 'bout his Comrades-In-Arms!!
Before Congress, Hanoi John slandered his FRiends...
Called them "Rapists" and "Killers"...has he no shame?!
There's just two ways to fight Lib'ral SCUM...
Remember...Left is all Red!!
One's the FRee Way...Reject Socialism!!
Right is fightin' 'til Big Guv'ment's DEAD!!
'Cuz Tyranny takes hold when Patriots ain't bold!!
Guv'ment's BAD when it warps yer head!!
Kerry is a Lib'ral and Big Guv'ment's his aim...
Just y'all wait 'til he "feels yer pain!!"
Massachusetts, Camelot's DreamWorld is stained...
Jack wails, "Kerry, why must you defame my name?!"
We're the RightWing, we FReep 'gainst Tyranny!!
'Gainst the Lib'rals, who loathe what's FRee!!
Have our plans fer Worlds where FReedom rings...
Join our Band...Fer Justice Sing!!
MoveOn-dot-org's THE Enemy...DemonRAT-Underground!!
Soros' Commies are Leftist SCUM!!
Retake the Cities from the kA.N.S.W.E.R.ous Powers!!
Reborn humans shall never cower!!
You see...
I seen me a Lib'ral and "Lurch" is his name...
He's no good...don't you vote fer his stain!!
Before Congress, Hanoi John slandered his FRiends...
Called them Rapists, Vile Killers...Have RATS No Shame?!!
FReegards...MUD
You talk as if this nation is made up of people like you and I. Do you realize the ever-shrinking minority in which we sit?
I am not ‘calling for pestilence and plague’. I love this republic as much as anyone. But I also recognize that the majority of the people who comprise her no longer comprehend, or value sufficiently, what she stands (or once stood) for. The list of assets is long and historically unparalleled, but eroding beyond recognition.
Ask a random man on the street to tell you five amendments to the Constitution. Or to name three justices of the Supreme Court. Or four Civil War generals. Or to name his congressional representative. Or to explain the causes, and the long-term results, of World War II. Or to interpret even a small part of the intent of the Mayflower Compact. Or to cite any kind of national sovereignty or security weakness that resulted from the Clinton years. Or to give you his opinion on judicial activism. I guarantee you that, eight times out of ten, on any of these questions you will be greeted with a blank stare.
How does one reach such ‘brethren’?
Politicians are buying votes by stealing the fruits of your labors from you, and unconstitutionally giving them to special interest groups (who just happen to vote). They are refusing to do what is necessary to stem illegal immigration because illegal immigration eventually profits and benefits leftists. They are systematically degrading all of the underpinnings that brought this country to its heights (Godly influence in law and justice, the preservation of our national sovereignty, the importance of individual freedom, the necessity of limited government, the need for individual responsibility, and the sanctity of human life). How many of those six concepts are alive and well in this nation today? Better question: Provided they have two cars in their garage, cable television, and internet access, what percentage of Americans give a damn whether those six concepts are under relentless attack and surviving on life support?
You talk of ‘power to expose people to the truth’. I have spent a good deal of time over this past year both talking with people at public meetings and pounding the pavement for various candidates and causes – the most strenuous of which was the candidacy of Pat Toomey against Arlen Specter. Believe me, I learned a valuable lesson over the last twelve months – which was a strong suspicion, now made real and tangible:
The average American is too lazy to ferret out the truth. He is more than willing to listen to it when it stands in his doorway, or sits in his livingroom. But once the bearer of that truth leaves his home, he reverts to placing the genuine welfare of his country on the back burner. Can’t be bothered reading more than superficial political analyses, and swallows soundbite news hype as if it were so much cotton candy.
You and I can’t shout from the rooftops day in and day out. We, too, have jobs and families. But we spend a significant amount of our leisure time reading (sources that are not leftist-tainted) and listening (to sources that are reliable). The average American does little or none of that, and spends a shockingly small amount of time thinking about the state of his country’s health at all. So how do you suggest we disseminate the truth to a populace that generally balks at any critical thinking or analysis that doesn’t go down like pablum?
I know I sound to some like a whiner and a chronic pessimist. That is not my intention. I have simply experienced a very rude awakening, and I am reminded of it anew every day in conversations I have with ‘normal Americans’ in the course of my daily work.
If we are to revive this nation, its citizens need to become well-informed, involved in their local, state and national government decision-making, and aware that the mainstream political and media outlets are not adequate sources of reliable information. Its citizens show little inclination to expend the time and effort to do any of the above.
No, that does not mean that the rest of us (the perhaps fifteen to twenty percent who treasure what America used to be, and work to reclaim that national character and greatness) should throw in the towel. By no means. Doing so would amount to betraying this republic every bit as much as the political and media leftists are. But neither does it mean that we must ‘never doubt the ultimate success’ of our efforts. A marathon runner, five miles from the finish, and two miles behind the leader, knows full well that he isn’t going to win. But that doesn’t mean that he leaves the road and sits sulking in the grass. He still runs his personal best, so that he can be proud of his final time.
In this particular ‘marathon’ much more is at stake than personal glory or individual pride. The future of the most glorious nation in the history of mankind is on the line. So we must keep running. We must also cling to hope. The Lord works in miracles, when He determines they are necessary and desirable … and their recipients are worthy. We need to strive to be worthy, and pray that others will do so as well.
Realism (no matter how ugly a picture it paints), accompanied by hope, is never a dangerous or unrighteous path to follow. Realistically, I see ominous black clouds on the horizon. Blacker than I’ve ever seen before. And I see a populace afraid to look skyward. But I know Who is in control, and I pray that He will continue to deem us worthy of safety, security and prosperity. If I were playing God, I know I wouldn’t. Lucky for us I’m only a simple human whose miracle decision-making abilities are sorely lacking.
~ joanie