You are currently browsing the monthly archive for March, 2008.
Last Thursday was the first day of spring, which just happens to be my favorite season of the year. It’s a time of new birth and new beginnings. One of my greatest frustrations when we lived in Maryland was that spring came so late in the year compared to Texas. I’m looking outside right now at a bush that has burst into bloom. The Bradford Pear trees have already flowered and are covered with beautiful leaves. The dead grass is daily being replaced with new growth. This is the time of year when my nose runs and my soul soars, simultaneously.
I thank you, Lord, for spring. The new life blossoming around me reminds me of the new life the Lord gave to Christ, which is the hope of Christians everywhere. We have something that we want everyone to enjoy: eternal life that springs from God the Father himself!
This weekend we started a family project — we are creating a vegetable garden. I remember with longing the delicious taste of fresh produce picked from my grandpa’s garden every summer. I used to sit and snap beans and watch Bonanza with him on lazy summer afternoons…the sound of the window AC unit in the kitchen and the portable fans murmured in the background. Grandma used to cook these giant green beans with small, whole potatoes and a tiny bit of bacon for flavoring….yum! I can’t wait!
Thinking about gardening made me think about the various ways that gardens are mentioned in the Bible. Here are a few tasty tidbits I’ve dug up that the Lord planted (puns intended!):
In Isaiah 58, the Lord outlines what he considers true worship. We can deny ourselves food for a few days and fast, but he’d rather we share our food with the hungry. When we take care of others, we are showing true worship and will be granted several promises!
6 “No, this is the kind of fasting I want:
Free those who are wrongly imprisoned;
lighten the burden of those who work for you.
Let the oppressed go free,
and remove the chains that bind people.
7 Share your food with the hungry,
and give shelter to the homeless.
Give clothes to those who need them,
and do not hide from relatives who need your help.
If we do these things, then we are promised….
8 “Then your salvation will come like the dawn,
and your wounds will quickly heal.
Your godliness will lead you forward,
and the glory of the Lord will protect you from behind.
9 Then when you call, the Lord will answer.
‘Yes, I am here,’ he will quickly reply.
“Remove the heavy yoke of oppression.
Stop pointing your finger and spreading vicious rumors!
10 Feed the hungry,
and help those in trouble.
Then your light will shine out from the darkness,
and the darkness around you will be as bright as noon.
11 The Lord will guide you continually,
giving you water when you are dry
and restoring your strength.
You will be like a well-watered garden,
like an ever-flowing spring.
Isn’t that a beautiful picture? I would love for the condition of my heart, my soul, my mind, and my body to be like a well-watered garden. Lately I’ve been feeling parched. If I were an early spring flower, like a tulip, I’m afraid my leaves might be a little curled and my petals a bit rusty. My focus has been inward these past several weeks, trying to get our family over various illnesses. Oh, I’m feeling a bit convicted now!
If I want to spring forth and flow with energy like a gushing mountain stream, then I’ve got to get my thoughts going upwards and outwards and stop wallowing in my mud.
4 This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: 5 “Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Jeremiah 29
I’ll remember that verse when I’m pulling weeds!
While I’m on the subject of weeds, Jesus used the imagery of a farmer and gardening to describe the Kingdom of Heaven in Matthew 18:
24 Here is another story Jesus told: “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a farmer who planted good seed in his field. 25 But that night as the workers slept, his enemy came and planted weeds among the wheat, then slipped away. 26 When the crop began to grow and produce grain, the weeds also grew.
27 “The farmer’s workers went to him and said, ‘Sir, the field where you planted that good seed is full of weeds! Where did they come from?’
28 “‘An enemy has done this!’ the farmer exclaimed.
“‘Should we pull out the weeds?’ they asked.
29 “‘No,’ he replied, ‘you’ll uproot the wheat if you do. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest. Then I will tell the harvesters to sort out the weeds, tie them into bundles, and burn them, and to put the wheat in the barn.’”
31 Here is another illustration Jesus used: “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed planted in a field. 32 It is the smallest of all seeds, but it becomes the largest of garden plants; it grows into a tree, and birds come and make nests in its branches.
Jesus used the mustard seed many times to make a point. It is amazing that such a tiny seed grows into a robust plant. As an object lesson, Cadi and I will plant a mustard seed in one corner of our garden. We’ll first look at its seed versus the seeds of other vegetables and then see what grows the biggest! Jesus said even if we have a tiny, mustard-seed sized faith, we can literally move mountains in His name.
I am not known to have a green thumb. Brown, yes. There is a reason that all the plants inside my house are artificial. It will take faith and much prayer for our little garden to grow, but I am confident that the Lord is able to grow great things through me — even though my thumbs are pretty brown. When this little garden is successful and I post photos of our progress, be sure to give credit to the Lord! All glory goes to Him alone!!
It’s been several days since my last post. A late winter cold that ran through the rest of the family before hitting me turned into full blown bronchitis. Today I am rejoicing because I feel almost normal! The sun is shining with that almost too-bright quality that I’ve found to be so pervasive here in north Texas with the temperature in the 60s.
My daughter had an easter egg hunt this morning. When every egg had been found (within about three minutes!), Cadi noticed a stark before/after view of the field. I am continually amazed at how the Lord speaks to her gentle heart.
The field before the hunt is like the disciples felt before Jesus died on the cross. Then, after all the eggs were picked up, the field looks empty, just like the disciples felt after Jesus died on the cross. It’s the in-between time that is so sad.
I tried paraphrasing her comment above, but she’ll probably tell me I got part of it wrong! Anyway, my sweet child hit the nail on the head with that one, didn’t she? It’s the in-between times of life that are sometimes so empty, so barren.
I wonder how bowed down with anguish the disciples must have been to see their Lord hanging on the cross. Usually the Easter story is told from the perspective of Christ and the over-arching meaning and symbolism of what he did for us. But buried within that story is the tale of the ordinary humans facing perplexing anguish…and most likely doubt. What did his death mean for them? Did they question their loyalties, examine their hearts? Had they been misled? Those questions swirled in with grief at the loss of their rabbi, their friend. The man they literally followed around the countryside…the one who healed their diseases, miraculously provided food and provisions, walked on water, calmed the waves in a storm, brought a dead man back to life…this one, gone? Dead? How did they react?
Let’s take a walk through the gospels and see how they reacted to Jesus’ arrest and crucifixion:
Peter was filled with fear after the mob came and arrested Jesus. This man whom Jesus had named “The Rock” had very human feelings. We learn that he was not as big of a Christ follower as he thought he would be. Never in a million years would he have thought he would desert Jesus.
Peter declared, “Even if everyone else deserts you, I will never desert you.” Matthew 26:33
It was in this in-between time that Peter came face to face with his own weaknesses. Indeed, all the other disciples deserted Jesus after he was arrested. They didn’t casually walk away, either. The Bible says in verse 56,
At that point, all the disciples deserted him and fled.
People don’t flee unless they are deathly afraid. People flee from robbers. When the airplanes hit the World Trade Center, people fled as fast as they could to get away from the terror and debris. So these disciples who Jesus had been teaching deserted him. They turned tail and ran. But what about Peter? What did he do?
58 Meanwhile, Peter followed him at a distance and came to the high priest’s courtyard. He went in and sat with the guards and waited to see how it would all end.
He went and sat in the courtyard. Technically, that is still following Christ, but it is doing so at a distance. It’s that “wait and see” approach to life. I am feeling very convicted writing these words because there are many times that I do exactly what Peter did. I follow Christ, yes. But sometimes I do so at a distance. My mind and my heart are not always one hundred percent sold out for Him.
Last week I had an appointment with a pulminologist. When he learned that I am a homeschool parent, he questioned me at length on my reasons for homeschooling. He asked me very tough questions. I could feel my cheeks blushing as I stumbled around my answers. As a former teacher, I answered professionally and spoke of student-teacher ratios and standardized test scores. But not once — not once — did I mention my faith in Christ as a defining reason for homeschooling.
Like Peter, I am shamed by my response and determined to make this right, to use it as a learning experience for myself. And that got me to thinking — if I didn’t naturally spout it as the reason, could it be that I have allowed other reasons to supersede the main one — to train up my child in the understanding, knowledge, and wisdom that comes from the Lord? Am I too mired in math, history, spelling and reading to put the focus on learning about the Lord?
Because of my reticence, I missed a golden opportunity to share my faith. This doctor then prescribed a zillion pills and sent me on my way. But what would have happened if I had looked him in the eye and gently said,
I homeschool my child because the Lord laid it on my heart that it is the right thing to do in this time, in this place. Public education has dissected God from all topics of learning, and my faith cannot let that stand. The One who created me is the same One who created this world we live in, and it is through Him that we learn the truth that sets us free and opens our minds to true wisdom and understanding.
But I did not say that. I kept my faith in the distance. To bring it to the front, perhaps I will write him a letter. I need to communicate with him anyway about my condition. Peter did not write a letter, though, nor did he look anyone in the eye and tell them about the miracles he’d witnessed or the things Jesus had promised. (He did promise, before his arrest, that he would be hung on a cross and that on the third day he WOULD rise again.) But Peter didn’t boast about any of that to the guards. He waited.
The other disciples fled and deserted Jesus when he was arrested. Peter followed — at a distance — but then he deserted Jesus with the words of his mouth:
69 Meanwhile, Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard. A servant girl came over and said to him, “You were one of those with Jesus the Galilean.”
70 But Peter denied it in front of everyone. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said.
71 Later, out by the gate, another servant girl noticed him and said to those standing around, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.[l]”
72 Again Peter denied it, this time with an oath. “I don’t even know the man,” he said.
73 A little later some of the other bystanders came over to Peter and said, “You must be one of them; we can tell by your Galilean accent.”
74 Peter swore, “A curse on me if I’m lying—I don’t know the man!” And immediately the rooster crowed.
75 Suddenly, Jesus’ words flashed through Peter’s mind: “Before the rooster crows, you will deny three times that you even know me.” And he went away, weeping bitterly.
He went away, weeping bitterly.
It was an in-between time for Peter, just as it has been an in-between time for me. There are times that I feel so full of the spirit that I feel like singing or soaring in the air with the birds…if I don’t sing to the Lord it feels like my soul will burst. And then there are times that I feel so low and barren. Doubts zing through my mind and I question the One who made me. I pout. I cry. Modern day doctors call it depression — I call it walking through another valley. I walked through a valley recently when I got so sick. It’s difficult to write uplifting words about faith when your soul feels wrung out! But the Lord was still with me, just as He was with Peter when Peter went away, weeping bitterly.
The other disciples holed up in their in-between time…at least, the men did. Several women followers of Jesus watched the gruesome crucifixion from a distance. From Mark 16:
40 Some women were there, watching from a distance, including Mary Magdalene, Mary (the mother of James the younger and of Joseph[i]), and Salome. 41 They had been followers of Jesus and had cared for him while he was in Galilee. Many other women who had come with him to Jerusalem were also there.
After Jesus died, Joseph of Arimathea asked for Jesus’ body for burial. He, at least, was a man of action.
46 Joseph bought a long sheet of linen cloth. Then he took Jesus’ body down from the cross, wrapped it in the cloth, and laid it in a tomb that had been carved out of the rock. Then he rolled a stone in front of the entrance. 47 Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joseph saw where Jesus’ body was laid.
The other disciples were in the middle of terrible grieving, even on the third day. These were the same disciples who heard straight from Jesus’ mouth that he WOULD return to them on the third day. Their grief was so real and so bitter that they forgot his promise and did not believe he would come back even when told that he had been seen alive (from Mark 16):
9 After Jesus rose from the dead early on Sunday morning, the first person who saw him was Mary Magdalene, the woman from whom he had cast out seven demons. 10 She went to the disciples, who were grieving and weeping, and told them what had happened. 11 But when she told them that Jesus was alive and she had seen him, they didn’t believe her.
They were so consumed with grief that they couldn’t see the good news. Have you ever been like that? Have you ever been so down, so depressed, that you forget the promises Jesus has given?
12 Afterward he appeared in a different form to two of his followers who were walking from Jerusalem into the country. 13 They rushed back to tell the others, but no one believed them.
So now the count is THREE witnesses to Jesus’ resurrection, but they still do not believe. Again, this is in spite of the fact that Jesus himself told them he would rise again.
14 Still later he appeared to the eleven disciples as they were eating together. He rebuked them for their stubborn unbelief because they refused to believe those who had seen him after he had been raised from the dead.[d]
Finally, they believe! He appears to all eleven of them. After all, eleven witnesses of the same event give credibility to that event, don’t they? Especially when their experience is identical; it’s not as if they all had identical dreams. This really happened! They were all rebuked at the same time. But they didn’t seem to wallow in this unbelief for long after they had been reminded by their Savior. After Jesus gave them instructions to go out and tell this world about him, Mark 16:20 records that:
And the disciples went everywhere and preached, and the Lord worked through them, confirming what they said by many miraculous signs.
The disciples were in a very bitter “in-between” time. They were so wrapped up in it that they failed to see the Light beckoning, calling them to remember the promise and believe. It is so easy to forget to believe in God’s promises when we are walking through those in-between times. Sometimes we become so encased in our bitterness and tears that nothing short of a miracle can snap us out of it, as it did for the eleven disciples. As I walk my road with Christ, I pray that I will be able to rise above the in-between times. I pray I will come up for air enough times to realize that the Light still beckons. And when my hard heart finally receives the truth and I start to break out of the in-between time in the valley, I joyfully accept any rebuke He sends my way, because the rebuke itself is proof of His unwavering love.
When I first got my degree in elementary education several years ago (we won’t dwell on how long ago THAT was!), I never in a million years dreamed I would one day be a homeschool parent. After all, my college professors spent hours teaching me education theory and philosophies and discipline strategies and lesson plan formats. I put together a notebook for one class that detailed thirty ways to teach vocabulary words. I learned how to spot common error patterns in math and memorized ways to correct those errors. I learned the science of how a child acquires language and learns to read, write, and spell. But ask any teacher, and you’ll see that all that “book” knowledge amounted to a hill of beans when she looked out on her first class of students. That’s because good teaching is as much about relationship building as it is about gaining knowledge.
Around the second month of the school year, the students and I would “click,” and then learning started happening at a faster pace. They learned which buttons of mine NOT to push, and I learned what made each one tick. By the end of the school year, I knew these kids and loved them. I was often frustrated because some of these kids had needs that I couldn’t meet. I could not — no matter how much I wanted to — spend an hour during class walking a student through a math problem. I could not do occupational therapy exercises with a child who so desperately needed help with handwriting and spelling. I had twenty other kids, each with their own varying needs, pulling on me every day.
It was this feeling of there not being enough of me to go around that made me first think about homeschooling. I’m musing about my reasons for homeschooling because a real threat exists today for parents who choose to homeschool. The California 2nd Court of Appeals ruled on February 28th that it is illegal to homeschool in California. From the case opinion, the court ruled:
“It is clear to us that enrollment and attendance in a public full-time day school is required by California law for minor children unless (1) the child is enrolled in a private full-time day school and actually attends that private school, (2) the child is tutored by a person holding a valid state teaching credential for the grade being taught.”
“California courts have held that under provisions in the Education Code, parents do not have a constitutional right to school their children in their own home.”
The homeschool community is in an uproar not just in California, but nationwide. The Home School Legal Defense Association, Focus on the Family, and other pro-family groups have been working hard to educate the public about this possible erosion of parental rights, right here on our own United States soil.
Is it really necessary to have a teaching degree to be able to effectively teach your own kids? In a word, NO! All the teacher training I had to get my four year degree did nothing to prepare me like true experience did. I learned right away that the key to educating a child is establishing a good relationship. It’s possible to be a respect-commanding teacher without being a tyrant. But as a classroom teacher, I was at a huge disadvantage.
Consider this: I wasn’t there for breakfast. I didn’t know whether or not Melissa had something nutritious to eat. I wasn’t privy to family issues or health issues. I didn’t know that Sammy was up all night after another round of night terrors or that homework didn’t get done because Dad was out of town and Mom was sick with a migraine. Every child in my classroom came to me with a set of challenges that I knew nothing about.
And here’s the good part — now that I am a homeschool mom, I know about my student’s challenges because I am her mom! We’ve done “school lite” this week because we’ve both been sick with a terrible cold. In between trips to the doctor to get chest x-rays and trips to the store for popsicles and to the pharmacy for inhalers, we’ve taken it easy. I did not have to call in a substitute; when we felt like it, we did our schoolwork in our pajamas bundled up on the couch. When we needed to, we took naps. When my daughter’s anxiety over a math lesson dissolved into tears, I knew that was more the result of a sleepless night than true trouble understanding the lesson. The point is that as her mother and her teacher, I am in a unique position to meet her learning needs each and every day. If it’s a gorgeous spring day, we might take our history outside and enjoy the fresh air.
A mom who does not have a teaching degree who homeschools is no less qualified than I am to teach her children. The amount of curriculum available for homeschool parents is astounding (and yes, at times overwhelming!) Many of these curriculums’ teacher guides are more thorough than the guides found in public and private classrooms — believe me, I know! My Sonlight curriculum tells me exactly what to read on which days. Sometimes we go faster than the guide, sometimes we go slower. But the fact of the matter is we are both learning!
That’s another advantage to homeschooling. I am finding an interest in history that I never had as a student. I am relearning some things and even learning some new right alongside my daughter. For example, in school I had a difficult time memorizing multiplication facts. I don’t know why it was so hard for me, but I remember crying over it. Our math curriculum just taught my daughter a trick for the x9s that I never learned — both digits add up to 9, and the first digit is one less than the number that was multiplied by 9. For example, in 3 x 9, the first digit in the answer is 2 (1 less than 3), and the second digit is 7 (2 plus 7 equals 9). Here I am, a degreed TEACHER, and I didn’t know that trick.
The fact is that there are a variety of curriculums out there that might work for one child but not for another. I know some moms who use completely different approaches to teaching reading because their kids are so different in the way that they learn. We who homeschool have the freedom to pick and choose what works best for our kids. If our kids were in public or private schools, we’d have to swallow whatever curriculum the school chose whether they suited our children’s learning styles or not.
Another reason I homeschool? Testing. I think standardized testing has a very small (read miniscule!) place in the overall assessment of a student. I do test my child each year with the Stanford, but I do so more to look for growth across the years than for what she accomplished on one test. But the mainstream folks in public education are suddenly aware that they are failing our kids. Fifth graders can’t read on grade level (maybe it has something to do with that curriculum that doesn’t meet their needs?). Texas’ system of measuring learning is through the TAKS. Way too much emphasis is being placed on this test, and it’s being used as a basis on whether or not a child goes on to the next grade. It’s also being used to determine performance bonuses for teachers (which is also a bad idea. Some kids fail the test on purpose so they can get their teachers in trouble. Or they just don’t put any effort into it at all because they are so afraid to fail). The result is a confusing list of rules and regulations that nobody follows with regularity — consider that 4 out of 5 5th graders who flunked the TAKS were still promoted, despite rules that state otherwise.
The so-called standards are another reason we homeschool. I teach my child until she knows the topic with at least 90% proficiency. But the Texas Education Agency rates a school’s performance on these very horrible scores:
Academically Acceptable — Scores 65% in Reading, Writing, and Social Studies; 45% in Math; 40% in Science.
Recognized — Scores 75% in each subject
Exemplary — Scores 90% in each subject
So in Texas it’s acceptable for 60% of kids to flunk the science portion of the TAKS, 55% of them to flunk Math, and 35% of them to flunk reading and writing. Acceptable? Not by my standards. That, friends, is one of the main reasons I homeschool!
I checked out the testing schedule for my child’s school district. I wanted to see how many days were set aside for standardized testing. This district does the required state testing but also performs almost monthly “benchmark” tests. A child on my daughter’s grade level would (are you sitting down?) be testing 31 days out of the school year. A full month! That works out to about 20% of school days devoted to testing — not including all the practice days that are shoved down these kids’ throats. No wonder the drop out rate is on the rise!
Of course we strive to pass on our Christian worldview. We learn about our subjects within the context of us being a small part of God’s great creation. Our studies take us into the Bible every day (she’s working on reading the One Year Bible). Let me tell you, we’ve had some eye-popping discussions after some of her readings in the book of Numbers! None of that would be possible in a public school setting, but it is second nature to us. Being children of God is who we are. We mess up, He picks us back up. We are learning how to be Christ followers alongside our child. I can’t think of a better reason to homeschool than this!
From Deuteronomy 6:
5 Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.
It’s almost spring in Texas! The grass is getting green around the edges of sidewalks and houses, trees and shrubs are beginning to bloom, and tulips are popping up all over the place. On Saturday the weather was so warm we needed sunscreen to be outdoors!
But this is, after all, Texas, and that means that nothing is predictable about the weather. If you don’t like it, wait a minute. It’ll change.
And that’s what happened to us last night. After a very warm weekend, Monday began with a boom as severe storms swept through the region, leaving behind downed branches and a cold, dreary drizzle. Cold drizzle is typical wintertime weather here. But then around 6pm, snow began to fall. By the time we got up this morning, we had at least 4 inches of snow on the ground. The novelty of the white wet stuff was too tempting to resist. Even though our homeschool co-op had classes today, I decided to stay home and avoid the mess on the highways.
Old Man Winter was taking his last stand here, shaking his finger at all those blooming flowers and greening grass. Here are some photos of Texas snow…
Similarly, Governor Huckabee is taking a last stand in Texas and Ohio today. But unlike the snow that’s melting away as I write, Huckabee is not going to go away. He is not in this presidential race because of a big ego, as some in the news industry would have people believe. He is fighting a fight for true conservative leadership with a twist: his ideas and leadership style are new and fresh. He’s been fighting an uphill battle all the way against the “powers that be” — against the news media discounting him. Against political pundits not taking him seriously. Against unfair and untrue reporting that he had “pulled out” of Florida. And now against those who say it is a “mathematical impossibility” for him to win the nomination.
To all of those nay-sayers, I say…just watch God work miracles! Many things throughout history have happened because the Lord said so, even in the face of seemingly impossible odds. Take a walk with me through the “Hall of Faith” found in Hebrews 11:
7 It was by faith that Noah built a large boat to save his family from the flood. He obeyed God, who warned him about things that had never happened before. By his faith Noah condemned the rest of the world, and he received the righteousness that comes by faith.
8 It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance. He went without knowing where he was going.
11 It was by faith that even Sarah was able to have a child, though she was barren and was too old. She believed[b] that God would keep his promise. 12 And so a whole nation came from this
one man who was as good as dead—a nation with so many people that, like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore, there is no way to count them.
22 It was by faith that Joseph, when he was about to die, said confidently that the people of Israel would leave Egypt. He even commanded them to take his bones with them when they left.
23 It was by faith that Moses’ parents hid him for three months when he was born. They saw that God had given them an unusual child, and they were not afraid to disobey the king’s command.
27 It was by faith that Moses left the land of Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger. He kept right on going because he kept his eyes on the one who is invisible.
29 It was by faith that the people of Israel went right through the Red Sea as though they were on dry ground. But when the Egyptians tried to follow, they were all drowned.
30 It was by faith that the people of Israel marched around Jericho for seven days, and the walls came crashing down.
31 It was by faith that Rahab the prostitute was not destroyed with the people in her city who refused to obey God. For she had given a friendly welcome to the spies.
32 How much more do I need to say? It would take too long to recount the stories of the faith of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and all the prophets. 33 By faith these people overthrew kingdoms, ruled with justice, and received what God had promised them. They shut the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the flames of fire, and escaped death by the edge of the sword. Their weakness was turned to strength. They became strong in battle and put whole armies to flight. 35 Women received their loved ones back again from death.
I would never try to add to Scripture. But if there was another slot there in Paul’s “Hall of Faith,” it might read something like this:
It was by faith that Huckabee stayed in the race, despite unfair reporting by the news media, despite being told his election would be a “mathematical impossibility,” despite being condemned for his faith in Christ. He was not taken seriously by the media and political elite because of his faith. But it was by this very faith that he swept Iowa and then the South on Super Tuesday. It was by this faith that he gained support from people across racial, ethnic, and religious lines, and because of his faith, the Republican Party now must reassess its platform and values.
I hope I can write tomorrow that it was by his faith that he came out ahead in Texas and Ohio!
Our God often works through the underdog. Why does he do that? I think it might be because He wants to be loved and adored…he delights in showing us just what he can do for us. That is why I confidently cast my vote for Huckabee in this election cycle. Some may say that today’s election is Huckabee’s Last Stand, and it may be. But there is power in standing, as we see in Ephesians 6:
11Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities,
against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
The important thing….is to stand in faith. If you live in Texas, Ohio, Vermont or Rhode Island, will you join me today and take a stand with Huckabee?
The Texas and Ohio primaries are coming up this Tuesday. The Goliath News Media and conservative pundits have all but pushed Mike Huckabee aside in the face of Senator McCain’s accumulation of delegates and poll numbers.
What they discount, however, is the rural vote. Huckabee took the south on Super Tuesday, primarily in rural areas. The big cities went for McCain (why, I don’t know), but the common-sense folks of rural America recognize something genuine, fresh, and new in Mike Huckabee. He is untainted by Washington politics. He does not have a Keating Five scandal in his past. He is a leader who is willing to embrace both sides of the aisle in order to get progress made. America is tired of presidential promises that aren’t kept, of career politicians who say one thing one day and then flip-flop their ideals whichever way the wind blows.
Whatever else you might say about Texas, it is essential to note how BIG the state truly is. Texas is comprised of 262,797.12 square miles of land, most of it rural. Texas has the largest rural population in the country, with over 3.6 million rural residents!
Why do I think Senator McCain would not be good for our country? Let me count the ways:
He cheated on his first wife — the one who waited for him while he was a POW — and married another woman one month after his divorce was final.
Why is that significant? It happened years ago, and since then he’s been married to the same woman. It’s important because a leader needs to have an excellent character. I am not throwing stones at him. The per capita divorce rate as of 2004 was .37 percent — nearly 40% of marriages end in divorce. Infidelity was one of the reasons. American families are falling apart, and as they do, more and more rely on welfare and government assistance to take the place of working moms and dads.
1 Timothy 3 talks about qualifications for leaders in the Christian church. Of course, our nation is NOT a church. But the nature of democracy is that the people get to elect leaders whose values match their own. As Christians, we have a duty to select our choices based not just on a candidate’s stance on the issues, but also on his or her character. An argument can be made, however, that these guidelines set down in scripture for church leadership qualifications can logically be applied to presidential leadership qualifications. In that context, then, take a look at 1 Timothy 3:2:
2Now the overseer must be above reproach, the husband of but one wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, 3not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. 4He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him with proper respect.
Who among the candidates fits that tall order? Not Senator-Lose-His-Temper McCain. He has been the husband of two wives, frequently uses profanity, and loses his temper. Mike Huckabee, however, is the husband of but one wife, he is temperate and self-controlled, he is able to teach, he is gentle, he is not quarrelsome and is not a lover of money.
He supported amnesty for illegal immigrants.
Senator McCain’s bill on illegal immigration — cosponsored by Kennedy — last year was thankfully defeated. If it had been passed into law, violators would have been allowed to stay in the country, pay a fine, and become automatically legal.
Right is right, and wrong is wrong. I sympathize with those who want to come into our land of opportunity. As Huckabee says, I’m very thankful that people are trying to get in instead of trying to get out! However, we have existing laws detailing the number of immigrants allowed entrance to our borders…laws that are, as of now, a complete sham.
What would happen if I set a “law” in my house that said my daughter was only allowed one sleepover a week with one friend? Instead of obeying my law, she invited fifty friends, and they all converged on our doorstep. Should I allow them all to stay the night? If I did allow them all to stay, I’d have to find blankets and enough food for them all. My water bill would go up with the increase in showers. My daughter would learn that my rules aren’t really rules…they are just guidelines, and she can do whatever she wants. The next time I told her NO, she’d just ignore me and do whatever she wanted anyway. Soon she’d stop asking me permission to go outside and play, and I might find myself standing at the door wondering where on earth she’s run off to.
The point is, we have rules and laws for a reason. If people are allowed to break them without suffering any consequences, they will continue to break them. Why not? Especially if breaking them pays off for them in big ways.
If you’re going to look the other way and not enforce existing laws, then perhaps they all ought to be tossed. Just open the borders up. Let anyone come in, especially if they are from our neighbors to the south. (I’m being sarcastic here!)
The breaking of rules is so blatant that a recent Dallas Morning News article publicly detailed the story of an illegal immigrant who moved back to Mexico and then decided to come back to Texas because conditions there were so deplorable.
“We have nothing to come home to,” Mr. Rubí explained. “What are we going to do here … especially when we know the jobs await us there?”
Watching them mingle near her grandmother’s home is Ms. Arzola, who has worked in North Texas, Houston and Florida. She empathizes with her neighbors.
“There’s something about the water in the United States,” she said. “Once you taste it, you’re hooked for life. You miss it. You crave it. You’re hooked.”
Lack of clean water is a horrible reality for many of our neighbors not just to our south, but also in our own state of Texas! (If you don’t believe me, do a google search on colonias in Texas). As a compassionate nation, we could reach across the border and help them learn how to provide clean drinking water for their own residents. We could help them learn to stand on their own feet so their residents aren’t running to us illegally to provide for their families’ basic needs. Instead, we look the other way. We let them sneak in. Many of them drown trying to cross the Rio Grande. Others suffocate to death in hot, crammed trucks, with no water or food for miles and miles. These people take the huge risks in human trafficking because their own country has lagged behind ours in technology and sanitation. They sneak over our border so they can have their babies in our hospitals so their children will be US Citizens.
Yes, their circumstances are sad. But they still broke the law. If a homeless person steals a rich man’s wallet, he is still charged with robbery and tried by a jury. These unfortunate souls need a better way to make a life than having to live in the shadowlands, afraid to show their faces for fear they will be deported. The way to make it right is to go back home and then come back in legally! We need a leader who can be tough and compassionate with our neighbors to the south. Perhaps the Mexican government should be held accountable for their citizens who sneak over here. We need fresh ideas and faces to attack this tough issue.
Mike Huckabee’s plan for strengthening our immigration policies addresses those issues and more. Senator McCain’s plan does nothing about those who are already here illegally. And had his bill passed into law, our current immigration laws would have been made into even a bigger farce than they are now.
Senator McCain has wishy-washy views about abortion laws and supports embryonic stem cell research.
1999: “in the short term, or even the long term, I would not support repeal of Roe v. Wade,”
2007: “It should be overturned.”
Embryonic stem cell research involves using human embryos for research purposes before destroying them. This practice is abhorrent to those of us who believe an embryo is a life. During WWII, many Jewish people were viewed as “non people” by scientists, and they were forced to undergo gruesome experiements. How is this different than experimenting with human embryos?
“All I can say to you is that I went back and forth, back and forth on it and I came in on one of the toughest decisions I’ve ever had, in favor of that research. And one reason being very frankly is those embryos will be either discarded or kept in permanent frozen status.” The senator, while standing firm on his decision added, “I understand how divisive this is among the pro-life community.”
From Catholic.org
Governor Huckabee, however, is firmly against embryonic stem cell research and would use his presidential bully pulpit in an attempt to change hearts and minds. The “pro-choice” culture we’re living in is resistant to change. But Huckabee realizes that you can’t legislate morality. What you can do, is lead by example.
What I accomplished as Governor proves that there is a lot more that a pro-life President can do than wait for a Supreme Court vacancy, and I will do everything I can to promote a pro-life agenda and pass pro-life legislation. If I’m saddled with a Democrat Congress, I’ll veto any pro-abortion legislation they pass. I will staff all relevant positions with pro-life appointees. I will use the Bully Pulpit to change hearts and minds, to move this country from a culture of death to a culture of life. I have no desire to throw women in jail, I just want us to stop throwing babies in the garbage.
Senator McCain’s tax reform is just more of the same mumbo jumbo.
Sometimes you just have to throw out the old. Our tax code is antiquated and penalizes productivity. Americans deserve a government that is financed in an easy-to-understand way. You should not need a degree in economics to understand the federal tax code. Rather than throwing out the old, Senator McCain’s tax reforms involve doing more of the same with a few cuts for some people…his ideas just add another layer of confusion to an already hopeless law.
Governor Huckabee’s FairTax proposal is a fresh idea. Even if, as some say, it has no chance of becoming law, at least the introduction of such a law, with presidential support, would open up debates on creating a new system of financing our government. We are in desperate economic times. I just spent nearly $50 at the gas pump today. No, I don’t drive a tank! I drive a small car.
Despite Goliath News Media pundits warning me that voting for Huckabee is throwing away my vote, I did it anyway. I did it because Governor Huckabee’s values match my own. I did it because I will not compromise my principles to vote for a man who cheated on his wife, supports embryonic stem cell research, wrote a bill that provided for amnesty for illegals, and represents more of the same “old guard” politics. It’s time for a change!
