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Ascension Sunday-May 14

08 May

Sunday before Pentecost- Focus on mission-Ascension Sunday reminds us of Christ’s ascent to heaven and is the prelude to Pentecost when the church should be launching its summer evangelistic efforts. Before it starts, the church should be clear on it’s mission. After Jesus rose from the dead and showed Himself to His disciples, He appeared to them in Galilee-Matt. 28: 16-20 He gathered them and told them to go and make disciples of all nations, and to teach them all that He commanded them. During Pentecost, we concentrate on winning the lost. We are to seek the lost and lead them to the Lord. Once they receive Christ, we are to baptize them, symbolically illustrating their death and resurrection in Christ. During Kingdomtide we will focus on making disciples when we seek to teach them to do all that Christ has commanded us. That involves active training, not the passive attendance which is common in many churches today. Now is a good time to finalize plans for a summer campaign to reach those who do not know Christ. Every church board should open every meeting with the questions “What can we do to win souls?”.

 

 

Schools-5-A

08 May

In 2018, Missouri passed a law to allow schools to use instruction hours instead of days of school to allow flexible schedules including four day weeks. They claim it will help retain teachers and save money though no proof has been given to support those assertions. Parents have strongly resisted it because it would force them to get daycare for their children on the fifth day because most parents have to work five days a week.  While some companies are experimenting with flexible work schedules for employees, most working parents do not have the option of flexible scheduling. The main problem lies in the increasing number of single parent families and families where both parents work. While other States have discussed changing the school schedules, such as going to school all year. None have gained much traction

 
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Schools-2R

08 May

  There has been an ongoing fight since the voucher program began about whether public funds should go to private schools. The issue hinges on whether the State should support religious schools. Opponents claim religious schools should not get vouchers because the State cannot support religious instruction but if that is the case, they cannot support the public schools either because they teach Humanism which is really a religion because it meets all the criteria for a religion. The fact that most opponents and supporters miss is that it is not supporting the schools as such, it is providing funds for the student to go to the school of their choice. To say they cannot use it for religious schools is to discriminate against Christians. Parents should be free to send their children to the school of their choice. The Supreme Court has ruled that the government cannot bar Christian schools from receiving government funds simply because they are Christian.  Public schools are paid for from public taxes while Christian schools must depend on tuition from students and donations from supporters. Those who send their kids to Christian schools must not only pay taxes to support public schools, but tuition for their children as well. As a result, many church members cannot afford to send their kids to Christian schools so Christian schools cannot compete with the public schools. Vouchers given to parents to take to the school of their choice would level the playing field and enable more church members to send their kids to Christian schools. By giving each student, a voucher for a certain amount, parents can choose the school that is best for their child. If parents want to send their child to a more expensive school, they can pay extra, but many Christian schools actually cost less than public schools. (see “Truly in the World But, Not of it” part B, published by Lulu Press under “Education” for a full discussion of vouchers.)

 

 
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Health Care-H

06 May

A majority of coverage in the United states is still private insurance but Obamacare has increased the shift to government covered care. Canada is  now illustrating the natural progression many European countries have already experienced. As health care cost continue to rise and more companies fold, the government gains a monopoly and costs continue to rise. While insurance companies have to keep costs down to keep premiums affordable so they don’t lose customers to other providers, they have  to pay health care providers enough that they will continue to accept the insurance. They may not pay for services which they don’t feel are necessary but have to approve enough to insure the patient gets the care they need to keep them as a customer. The government doesn’t have to worry about its customers leaving because there is no other affordable policies for their client. We are already seeing many healthcare providers who refuse to accept Medicare and Medicaid because they don’t get reimbursed enough and have high costs for paperwork involved in getting paid. Service providers will often drop out due to the long delays in getting paid. That will result in long delays in getting care from the remaining providers. As costs increase, the government has to restrict services to control escalating costs. Government workers charged with approving payments are pressured to deny services which they don’t feel will be cost effective, which means those who are elderly or mentally challenged, as well as those with severe or life threatening injuries or illnesses.  Some patients will die without care while others will be encouraged to accept having their life terminated. Assisted suicides are spiraling out of control in Canada and in European countries. In addition, physicians will be encouraged to terminate the patient’s life without consulting them.

 

 
 

Health Care-G

06 May

President Biden’s deep state is again taking the law into their own hands. The Affordable Care Act was passed by Congress to provide Affordable health care to those who could not afford it but the administration is using it to promote their agenda. The Department of Health and Human Services has taken it upon themselves to rewrite the Affordable Care Act without the approval of Congress. They have added a provision requiring people of faith to fund elective abortions and transgender surgeries through their health insurance plans, ignoring the fact that Congress included a provision which prevents health care providers from funding abortions.  This will not only require people of faith to fund these practices against their conscience and in violation of the law, it will also force the insurance companies to increase their costs to pay for them putting an increased burden on those who can barely afford insurance. That will force some of them to drop their private insurance and go with government sponsored and controlled health care plans, subsidized by taxpayer funds. President Biden and his government agencies seem to feel  they are above the law and can ignore it when they see fit. We need to elect a president this November that will appoint agency directors who will obey the law.

 
 

Sixth Sunday of Eastertide-May 5

04 May

Fellowship-The Bible says the disciples were in one place, of one accord and were in prayer, seeking power from the Lord. The last Sunday before Ascension Day could be a time of fellowship over a potluck meal followed by a time of prayer that the church would be of one accord and that divisions and disagreements could be put aside to devote the church fully to demonstrating the love of God and that the members would be an example of God’s love that would attract unchurched people to the church so that the church could be able to reach those around it with the Gospel. It can be a time  when it finalizes plans for its summer outreach.

 

 

Education-1-AI

04 May

Parents are increasingly disturbed by the blatant attempt of school officials to confuse and indoctrinate their children with Gay propaganda, through the school curriculum and school clinics provided by Planned Parenthood. Children as young as Kindergarten are being told that they can change their sex, while the schools try to prevent parents and taxpayers from knowing what is being taught and what services are being provided their kids. Children that young don’t realize the difference between a boy thinking he is a girl and a boy actually becoming a girl. Teaching children that your sex may change confuses them and makes them afraid that they might wake up one morning to find they have switched to the opposite sex. The Planned Parenthood clinics are also pushing puberty blockers and corrective surgery to the kids which are paid for with Medicaid funds. Like with abortions, Medicaid is paying for these services with no attempt to bill the parents or their insurance, in violation of Medicaid rules that have strict income guidelines and require that the income of the parents of any minor getting services must be included. Such teaching is reckless and irresponsible, and parents are finally getting fed up with it. One mother became so upset she organized a world-wide sex-ed sit out where parents pulled their kids out of school for a day to warn administrators that if they didn’t change, the parents would pull their kids out permanently. Of course you didn’t hear about that in the liberal media. The time is fast approaching when parents who want well adjusted kids are going to have to pull their kids out of the public schools if the schools don’t change their ways. Ohio is considering a law similar to the Florida law that bans teaching sex related curriculum to grades K through 3 when kids are most impressionable and do not understand what they are being taught. Voters should flood their legislatures with calls, E-mails, and letters to support such legislation and check to see how their representatives vote on such issues. If their representatives support such issues, they should be voted out. Most representatives that support such issues receive hefty campaign funds from Planned Parenthood with funds provided them through taxpayer dollars for services they provide. A clear conflict of interest but one which many parents and taxpayers are not aware.

 

 
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Education-1-AH

04 May

Planned Parenthood has been developing sex ed curriculum and distributing it to schools funded by the government. They teach how to engage in sex to kindergartners and encourage sexual experimentation with the idea that sex is safe if you use protection. They know that contraceptives are subject to failures and children are not very good at maintaining the discipline needed to maintain consistent protection, so it will result in a high increase in pregnancies.  They also provide school clinics funded by the government to dispense contraceptives and condoms and refer students to their abortion clinics. School personnel often transport young girls to abortion clinics and do not report it to parents.  The clinics do not require identification to verify names or age and caution under age children against telling their age because then the clinic would be required by law to report them to their parents and child protection agencies since it is illegal to have sex with a minor. By reporting them as an adult, Planned Parenthood can then claim that the child is indigent and have the abortion covered by Medicaid since the child doesn’t have any financial resources, in spite of the fact that the child is often covered by their parents insurance, or the parents may have the ability to pay. If it was billed to the parent’s insurance they would find out about the abortion and the clinic doesn’t want the parents to know because they might object to the abortion. The parents would be less likely to be railroaded into an abortion then the child who has very little understanding of the consequences of an abortion. Therefore, the entire process is based on lies and deceit and is paid for through tax dollars. In addition, Planned Parenthood funnels millions of dollars that they receive from Medicaid for sex ed classes, school clinics, and abortions, to support candidates for Congress that will vote them additional funds to corrupt our kids. In other words, taxpayers are funding the corruption of their kids and the killing of millions of babies for the profit of a private company. Since the funds from abortions are being threatened by the repeal of Roe vs Wade, Planned Parenthood has been pushing transgender propaganda through its school curriculum and school clinics.

 

 
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Education-1-AG

04 May

Covid was a big boost for parents rights. Kids were forced to study at home so parents were able to access what their kids were being taught and many parents were really angry by what they saw. Many parents who are upset with what liberal policies have already been imposed on our public schools, have chosen to send their kids to private schools, if they can afford them, or home school them to avoid the liberal teaching in public schools. However, the teacher’s unions are trying to get the “Common Core Curriculum” established by President Obama to apply to all curriculum, including those used by private schools and home school parents. It would control what you teach your children when you home school them as much as it does when the public schools teach them. You could not opt out. Teaching that life matters, that the family is important, and that Constitutional government is the best government, would not be allowed, even in church based schools and home schools. Government has taken over dictating what is taught in the schools and is way out of hand. It is bad enough when the government controls what is taught in the public schools, but it has no right to control the private schools as well. It is time to return control of our schools to the parents and the voters who pay for them. Contact your State and federal legislators and demand that the government return control of our schools to those who pay for them and contact your friends and neighbors and urge them to do so as well.

 

 
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Fifth Sunday of Eastertide April 28

26 Apr

Commitment-The worship service could have a place where members can bring their survey sheets forward and place them on the alter as their offering to God. Members of the Board or a committee set up for the purpose could then review the survey sheets and direct members to areas where they may be able to serve. Most churches have a personnel committee of volunteers appointed before the annual meeting to develop a list of officers to be voted on but the church really needs a year long committee of those interested in helping people find ways to use their gifts that gets to know members and the church structure. It should be a year round work as committee members get to know people and their talents and the opportunities the church has to use those talents rather then a hurried affair by a randomly elected nominations committee charged with filling empty slots with warm bodies common in most churches. The Board may then consider those listed which have no current opportunities to see if they may provide opportunities to begin additional ministries which had not previously been offered. The church needs to take the long view of training members to be disciples by involving them in the church’s ministry rather than simply filling vacant positions. Many churches complain that they can’t get people to fill positions, but they only approach the 5-10% of their members who are already over committed. It is no wonder they get turned down. The Bible says God gave every member, talents to build up the church. The church needs to get to know the other 90-95% of members to see what talents God has given them.