Many churches started in the inner-city when the areas were more prosperous. As the areas deteriorated, many members moved out. The churches did nothing to reach the people living around the church. Eventually, the churches were made up mostly of non-resident members who came back to worship. The small remaining congregation was no longer able to support the big building which was too expensive to maintain. Eventually the churches decided to move to the suburbs where most of their members lived. Since the remaining members were often poor and elderly, they were not able to travel to the new church. Now some churches are seeking to reach the people in the inner-city but are finding it difficult because they have to rent facilities and they are often viewed as outsiders. The people are often geared toward survival and preaching alone will not attract the people here. The church must demonstrate God’s love through tangible ministry by meeting needs and showing they care. It must go beyond merely providing food and clothes to providing job training and teaching life skills.
MAGA-M-A
The second ingredient for life is to feel needed. Without that ingredient, we may survive but not really live. There are an increasing number of people who don’t see any meaning in life. The world says you are just the result of a series of accidents of nature. A blob of tissue has no purpose, it just exists. Many people seek meaning through their work or through seeking fame or fortune, only to see it rust, vanish in a fire, or get stolen. People used to find purpose through their work and men were prone to commit suicide after they retired because they no longer had any purpose. However, today many people no longer find meaning in work and simply put in their time until they can retire and enjoy life. Unless they find something meaningful before they retire, retirement will just be a continuation of the same old struggle to survive. However, the Bible tells us that God created us for a purpose. Each person is individually molded by God and has a unique purpose. The Bible says God has given each one of us gifts for the building up of the body of Christ. When we do not use those gifts, the church suffers. The church needs to seek to help its members find their gifts and use them through meaningful employment or through volunteer work.
MAGA-L-A
There are two ingredients needed for life. I am not talking about breathing and having a heart beat, those are needed for survival. To be truly alive, someone needs to feel wanted. We are seeing an increasing number of suicides because people feel they aren’t wanted. If people feel no one cares about them, they may feel the world would be better off without them. I am reminded of a young girl. I was called to a railroad bridge because she was thinking about jumping. She had no gross disfigurement, she had not lost anyone close, and had not been jilted by a boyfriend, she just felt the world would be better off without her. She felt she was only taking up space. She felt if she ended her life, very few people would notice and those who did would probably be glad that she was gone. In our world, people are increasingly isolated. They are lonely even in a crowd. Many cannot name a single person that would miss them if they were gone. They may look normal and act normal, but they are dead inside. They go through the motions of living but they are merely surviving. I was one of those. I was just a poor crippled boy from the trailer camps. The only ones that seem to notice me were those who enjoyed bullying me, until someone told me that the God who created the world, cared about me and gave His life on the cross for me. However, they didn’t just tell me, they showed me by the way they cared. That changed my life. There are people all around you who are just going through the motions. They are surviving but not really living. One great crisis could push them over the edge to where they feel the world will be better off without them. You can help them have a new life by sharing the love of God with them.
Eighth Sunday of Pentecost -B- July 27
Public schools also are facing increased pressure to use liberal textbooks and teach false and misleading information to support liberal causes. Many have banned the Bible and moral teaching in favor of sexual license, sexual disorientation, and racially divisive teaching. In addition, many seek to turn kids against their parents to counter moral teaching. Many also allow those who are sexually confused to use the bathroom of their choice, endangering women and girls. An increasing number of parents, both Christian and those with no Christian background are turning to homeschooling and Christian schools to remove their kids from such an environment. Some schools are allowing release time where kids can leave the school property to go to churches nearby for voluntary Bible training. Other schools still allow Christian organizations and churches to have Christian clubs on campus. Churches can start Christian schools and support homeschoolers, as well as supporting Christian clubs on campus to help counter the secular teaching the kids face in class.
Eighth Sunday of Pentecost -A- July 27
Dealing with issues-teens. Host discussion nights for teens to deal with social issues and help educate about them. Too often the church has been silent and many church members hold liberal ideas because that is all they hear. The church cannot convince the world that God’s way is better simply by claiming God said it, because those who don’t believe in God feel it is just your opinion and no better than that of anyone else. God created us and knows what is best for us but we must back our defense of Christian values with facts and demonstrate through our lives and the witness of the church that God’s ways are best. I have done a series of courses on social issues dealing with the values laid down in the Bible and how they differ from those who do not know the teaching of the Bible. It is good to have such sessions with adults also.
Unions-A-W
I live just outside Bowling Green which is a small Midwestern city which is largely rural and not dominated by unions so it supports the Republican party with its conservative values. The Democratic Party has very little foothold here compared to the large industrialized cities where unions control a lot of the politics. Therefore it was surprising to learn that in records listing sources of campaign funds, the Democratic candidate running for mayor in a recent election received large amounts of campaign funds from unions across the State and even from out-of-State unions. Those organizations will not receive any benefit from their investment. It is likely they are laundering contributions from other union sources to bypass contribution limits in order to install politicians who will support their union organizing in Bowling Green. While candidates need to satisfy their constituents to stay in office, money is needed to run campaigns. One has only to follow the money to see why Democrats vote for bills favoring abortion, labor unions, and Gay rights, in spite of widespread opposition to them by the majority of voters. It is almost certain that the candidate would be more likely to support proposals that would benefit those outside sources who supplied most of their campaign funds rather than those that would benefit local people who did not support their programs. When voters are easily swayed by flashy campaigns, as many are today, Democrats cater to large contributors such as Planned Parenthood, Gays Rights groups, and labor unions as well as liberal corporations who will contribute to their campaign chests enabling them to beef up their campaigns. Democrats are able to spend 5-10 times the money of Republicans who depend primarily on donations by conservative individuals and corporations. The candidates also provide special benefits to unions over those of the average worker. If politicians don’t vote the way the voters tell them to, voters need to find someone who will. But that requires that the voter check the politician’s record and watch what they vote for. Unfortunately, few voters today bother to do that. That is why our country is in the mess it is in. Fortunately, the candidate lost, however it illustrates how determined unions are to sway local politics, particularly in rural areas dominated by Republicans. Local elections are supposed to represent the will of the people and a large flow of money from outside gives local politicians a disadvantage.
Unions-A-V
The 1973 U.S. Supreme Court’s infamous decision in United States v. Enmons against the crew and cast of Top Chef for not hiring union people exempts union bosses from federal prosecution for coordinating campaigns of violence and extortion in pursuit of what they consider “legitimate union objectives.” Which means that unions can destroy your property and injure or kill you if it furthers the unions goal of forcing you to pay them money in order to get a high paying job. Somehow I think freedom and democracy got lost somewhere. Are violent threats and vandalism ever legitimate means? There is no “objective” that could justify vandalism, arson, assault and even murder. This decision has allowed union bosses to threaten and intimidate workers in order to force them to submit to union representation and forced dues. It has also allowed unions to engage in violent strikes, including beatings, arson, and even murder to intimidate non-union workers and prevent them from filling in while the union is on strike and has enabled them to badger State and federal legislators into providing government workers with lavish union wages and benefit packages at taxpayer expense. It has also allowed them to force large corporations to submit to union demands. Congress needs to pass a law guaranteeing Americans freedom from union violence and holding unions accountable for their actions like anyone else.
Sanctity of Life-A-1-E
Many people criticize those who support banning abortions in all cases, including cases of rape and incest. However, by allowing abortions in cases of rape and incest, it is essentially legalizing rape and incest. Since abortion centers don’t report the ages of clients, it disguises the extent of incest and rape against children. It is estimated that hundreds of thousands of children (1 out of 5) get abortions every year without their parent’s knowledge. Abortionists also do not report such cases to law enforcement agencies (though they are required to by law) so the rapists are never prosecuted. In addition, by destroying the baby and the placenta, abortion providers destroy the evidence needed to prove rape and incest and makes it impossible to prove who the father of the baby is, allowing the rapist to walk away free. Since abortion clinics do not require proof of identity, many underage girls get abortions by borrowing a friend’s Medicaid card to cover their abortion.
Seventh Sunday of Pentecost-July 19
Jails-Sunday Services, Bible Studies, and counseling are greatly needed in jails and prisons. Many in jails are short term and more minor offences while prisons are more long term and more serious offences. While ministering in jails and prisons is a very difficult ministry, it is very rewarding to see inmates turn to Christ. Many who have broken the law feel guilty and want to find forgiveness. They need to know that there is forgiveness and redemption through the shed blood of Christ. Others realize that what they did was wrong and want to mend their ways. They feel that they can’t change so why try. They need to know that we can become a new creature in Christ and there are people willing to help them. Often those let out of jail face problems they don’t know how to solve. Getting back home, reestablishing a residence, getting a job, etc. Many are afraid to face the unknown ahead and are encouraged that someone who understands the process is willing to walk with them through the process. Families of inmates also struggle and need encouragement. Often they face the loss of the
Sanctity of Life -A-4-AJ
We now have a case where someone in Texas is trying to sue a doctor in New York for mailing abortion pills to someone in Texas following an online teleconference. We don’t know if the pills caused injury or death or were mailed to a minor without the parents consent, but abortion is illegal in Texas. The New York county clerk refuses to file the case because New York has laws to shield New York abortion doctors from out of State lawsuits. It follows a lawsuit in Louisiana where a New York doctor prescribed abortion pills to a minor via telemedicine. Other medical providers are held liable for negligence and abortion providers should not be an exception. In addition, they are providing abortion pills to someone in a State where abortion is illegal. The doctor may be in New York but the abortion is taking place in a State where it is illegal. Telemedicine is where you go online and do a doctor visit online. The doctor than prescribes medicine without even seeing the patient in person. That alone is serious enough. Nothing is done to verify the pregnancy to rule out a tubal pregnancy which could be fatal. The fact is that the abortion pills also can cause serious complications which can be life threatening. The woman might be allergic to it or the abortion may not completely expel the placenta resulting in infection or uncontrolled bleeding which could result in death if not treated immediately. Yet the woman takes the pills at home with no medical personnel available. She may not even have anyone to call help if she cannot.