A Word From Chuck

I’m going to cut back on the political posts I’ve been doing the last few weeks…just as soon as I get back from our state Baptist convention.  In the mean time here’s a bit of a segue, which is part political, part just good stuff.

I’ve been reading Chuck Norris’ Black Belt Patriotism, which he wrote a few years back.  Say what you want about the guy, but this collection of thoughts about the history and future of our nation is really good.  I would encourage you to pick up and read a copy.  

Here’s just one little quote that sums things up; a word from Chuck:

“To make America a better, more decent, more civil place, to become a nation that once again puts its faith not in laws and man, not in the big government solutions, but in the freedom and responsibility of liberty safeguarded by morality, we need to make God first in our lives.  To be faithful to the Founders we need to be faithful to the Creator – the Creator they believed was the providential guide of our destiny.”

Constitution Party - A Summary

For the last couple weeks I've been posting parts of the Constitution Party platform to help folks see what differentiates this party from the "big two."  I'm hoping that maybe one or two people will at least take enough of an interest to read the whole thing, and to see why the time is now here for us to have a real change; one represented by folks like those serving the Constitution Party. 

I've posted the Preamble, the statement on Sanctity of Life (the very first plank!), the statement on Family, and the statement on Limited Government.  There are obviously other issues, but I don't want to drag this out (especially since I'm realistic enough to know that no one is really reading this!). 

I really do hope some folks will go the CP site and read the whole platform.  But if you want a general overview of who the CP is and what they stand for, here are two short statement:  The Constitution Party Mission Statement, and the Seven Principles of the Constitution Party. 

Mission Statement

The mission of the Constitution Party is to secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity through the election, at all levels of government, of Constitution Party candidates who will uphold the principles of the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution of the United States, and the Bill of Rights. It is our goal to limit the federal government to its delegated, enumerated, Constitutional functions.

Seven Principles Of The Constitution Party:

    Life: For all human beings, from conception to natural death;

    Liberty: Freedom of conscience and actions for the self-goverened individual;

    Family: One husband and one wife with their children as divinely instituted;

    Property: Each individual's right to own and steward personal property without government burden;

    Constitution And Bill Of Rights: interpreted according to the actual intent of the founding fathers;

    State's Rights: Everything not specifically delegated by the Constitution to the federal government, nor prohibited by the Constitution to the states, is reserved to the states or to the people.

    American Sovereignty: American government committed to the protection of the borders, trade, and common defense of Americans, and not entangled in foreign alliances.

Let me once again reiterate what I’ve said here often.  The whole “two party only” thing is a joke.  A third party can make a difference if folks would stop buying the lie of “electability” and would instead stand behind a candidate and a party that truly reflects our values.  

 

Putting Government In Its Place – Constitution Party Statement

First, let me say this.  The Constitution Party website has been updated, so I apologize if any of the links in my previous posts are no longer working.  The new page for the party platform is here.   As I continue to share some of these issues, I hope to have the right links for you.

Now then.  One of the biggest problems facing our nation is the size of government.  This affects the tax issue, the debt issue, many of the issues involving government’s intrusion into our lives.  Simply put, the federal government has gotten too big for its britches; much bigger than the framers of our Constitution ever intended.   And both Republicans and Democrats have contributed to this “growing” problem.

The Constitution Party, as per its name, is working to see our federal government restored to the limited role it was given by our Constitution.  Here is the statement from the party platform: 

Bringing Government Back Home.

“The closer civil government is to the people, the more responsible, responsive, and accountable it is likely to be. The Constitution, itself, in Articles I through VI, enumerates the powers which may be exercised by the federal government. Of particular importance is Article I, Section 8 which delineates the authority of the Congress.

The federal government was clearly established as a government of limited authority. The Tenth Amendment to the Constitution specifically provides that: "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."

Over time, the limitations of federal government power imposed by the Constitution have been substantially eroded. Preservation of constitutional government requires a restoration of the balance of authority between the federal government and the States as provided in the Constitution, itself, and as intended and construed by those who framed and ratified that document.

We pledge to be faithful to this constitutional requirement and to work methodically to restore to the States and to the people their rightful control over legislative, judicial, executive, and regulatory functions which are not constitutionally delegated to the federal government.

We stand opposed to any regionalization of governments, at any level, which results in removal of decision-making powers from the people or those directly elected by the people.

I hope folks are taking all this seriously.   I hope you’ve considered the ramifications of what party you plan to support.  I hope people will wake up and see that both the GOP and the Dems are more concerned about hanging on to their power than truly representing the people.  It’s time for a real change, from the top down. 

The Centrality of Family – Constitution Party Statement

The family is the centerpiece of life, the foundation of all society, and even the center of God’s dealing with His people.  He began by giving Adam a family.  He called Abraham and promised him a great family heritage.  The church is spoken of over and over again in terms of family.  Jesus Himself taught us to think of God in terms of “Father.”

In recent decades the family has fallen under greater and greater attack.  In the 80’s it was the whole “Murphy Brown” thing highlighted by Dan Quayle, saying dads were optional.  In the 90’s Hillary Clinton tried to tell us that the “village” was more crucial than the family.  Now, we want to redefine marriage itself, the foundation of family.

As I continue to post here various portions of the Constitution Party’s platform, I am especially appreciative of their statement regarding family, opposition to so called “gay marriage,” etc.  Yes, I know the GOP platform also contains this element but compare the differences in motivation.  

The GOP says that “It has been proven by both experience and endless social science studies that traditional marriage is best for children.”  The implication is that if I could argue that experience and “studies” prove otherwise, we’d have to redefine marriage.

The CP platform says that “The law of our Creator defines marriage as the union between one man and one woman.”  Here the foundation of the principle is not man-made science or observation, but the law of God.  It does not change.  This is a much more important statement, and yet one more reason I believe truly conservative, God-honoring people should support the CP.

Here is the rest of the family statement (which can be found along with the rest of the CP platform here.)

Family

    No government may legitimately authorize or define marriage or family relations, as affirmed by the 10th amendment, delegating to the people as our founders understood the family as necessary to the general welfare. We affirm the importance of Biblical scripture in the founders' intent as eloquently stated by Noah Webster: "The moral principles and precepts contained in the Scriptures ought to form the basis of all our civil constitution and laws… All the miseries and evils which men suffer from vice, crime, ambition, injustice, oppression, slavery, and war proceed from their despising or neglecting the precepts in the Bible."

The law of our Creator defines marriage as the union between one man and one woman. The marriage covenant is the foundation of the family, and the family is fundamental in the maintenance of a stable, healthy and prosperous social order. No government may legitimately authorize or define marriage or family relations contrary to what God has instituted. We are opposed to amending the U.S. Constitution for the purpose of defining marriage.

We reject the notion that sexual offenders are deserving of legal favor or special protection, and affirm the rights of states and localities to proscribe offensive sexual behavior. We oppose all efforts to impose a new sexual legal order through the federal court system. We stand against so-called "sexual orientation" and "hate crime" statutes that attempt to legitimize inappropriate sexual behavior and to stifle public resistance to its expression. We oppose government funding of "partner" benefits for unmarried individuals. Finally, we oppose any legal recognition of homosexual unions.

We recognize that parents have the fundamental right and responsibility to nurture, educate, and discipline their children. We oppose the assumption of any of these responsibilities by any governmental agency without the express delegation of the parents or legal due process. We affirm the value of the father and the mother in the home, and we oppose efforts to legalize adoption of children by homosexual singles or couples.

The Priority of LIfe - Constitution Party Statement

I mentioned recently that I attended a conference at which Pastor Laurence White gave a wonderful message reminding us that the issue in our nation (as in THE issue) is not the economy or immigration or anything else.  The issue is life.  If we continue the slaughter of innocent children, it really doesn’t matter much what else we do.

In light of that, I am so encouraged that the Constitution Party has as their very first “plank,” not hidden away somewhere in obscurity, but right up front, the issue of life.  After reading the Preamble I posted last time (assuming you have), following it up with this statement should give you a real idea about where this party stands.  And this is one of the big reasons I have thrown my support this way. 

Here is the CP statement on life, which you can also read along with the rest of the party platform here.

Sanctity of Life

The Declaration of Independence states:

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness".

The Preamble of the Constitution states a purpose of the Constitution to be to:

"secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity".

We declare the unalienable right of Life to be secured by our Constitution "to ourselves and our Posterity". Our posterity includes children born and future generations yet unborn. Any legalization of the termination of innocent life of the born or unborn is a direct violation of our unalienable right to life.

The pre-born child, whose life begins at fertilization, is a human being created in God's image. The first duty of the law is to prevent the shedding of innocent blood. It is, therefore, the duty of all civil governments to secure and to safeguard the lives of the pre-born.

To that end, the Constitution of these United States was ordained and established for "ourselves and our posterity." Under no circumstances may the federal government fund or otherwise support any state or local government or any organization or entity, foreign or domestic, which advocates, encourages or participates in the practice of abortion. We also oppose the distribution and use of all abortifacients.

We affirm the God-given legal personhood of all unborn human beings, without exception. As to matters of rape and incest, it is unconscionable to take the life of an innocent child for the crimes of his father.

No government may legalize the taking of the unalienable right to life without justification, including the life of the pre-born; abortion may not be declared lawful by any institution of state or local government - legislative, judicial, or executive. The right to life should not be made dependent upon a vote of a majority of any legislative body.

In addition, Article IV of the Constitution guarantees to each state a republican form of government. Therefore, although a Supreme Court opinion is binding on the parties to the controversy as to the particulars of the case, it is not a political rule for the nation. Roe v. Wade is an illegitimate usurpation of authority, contrary to the law of the nation's Charter and Constitution. It must be resisted by all civil government officials, federal, state, and local, and by all branches of the government - legislative, executive, and judicial.

We affirm both the authority and duty of Congress to limit the appellate jurisdiction of the Supreme Court in all cases of abortion in accordance with the U.S. Constitution, Article III, Section 2.

In office, we shall only appoint to the federal judiciary, and to other positions of federal authority, qualified individuals who publicly acknowledge and commit themselves to the legal personhood of the pre-born child. In addition, we will do all that is within our power to encourage federal, state, and local government officials to protect the sanctity of the life of the pre-born through legislation, executive action, and judicial enforcement of the law of the land.

Further, we condemn the misuse of federal laws against pro-life demonstrators, and strongly urge the repeal of the FACE Acts as an unconstitutional expansion of federal power into areas reserved to the states or people by the Tenth Amendment.

In addition, we oppose the funding and legalization of bio-research involving human embryonic or pre-embryonic cells.

Finally, we also oppose all government "legalization" of euthanasia, infanticide and suicide.

A Solid Foundation

November’s elections are almost upon us.  You hear from both Republicans and Democrats that this is a pivotal election; the future of our country is at stake.  I couldn’t agree more.  Which is why I continue to say, when possible, I will support neither Republicans or Democrats.  Instead I will stand with those who have made this their foundation...

Here is the preamble to the Constitution Party Platform.  Read it and see if this reflects your values, and your heartfelt desire for the direction of our nation.   And if it does, please get out and support CP candidates.

Preamble

The Constitution Party gratefully acknowledges the blessing of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ as Creator, Preserver and Ruler of the Universe and of these United States. We hereby appeal to Him for mercy, aid, comfort, guidance and the protection of His Providence as we work to restore and preserve these United States.

This great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. For this very reason peoples of other faiths have been and are afforded asylum, prosperity, and freedom of worship here.

The goal of the Constitution Party is to restore American jurisprudence to its Biblical foundations and to limit the federal government to its Constitutional boundaries.

The Constitution of these United States provides that "no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States." The Constitution Party supports the original intent of this language. Therefore, the Constitution Party calls on all those who love liberty and value their inherent rights to join with us in the pursuit of these goals and in the restoration of these founding principles.

The U.S. Constitution established a Republic rooted in Biblical law, administered by representatives who are Constitutionally elected by the citizens. In such a Republic all Life, Liberty and Property are protected because law rules.

We affirm the principles of inherent individual rights upon which these United States of America were founded:

    -That each individual is endowed by his Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are the rights to life, liberty, property and the pursuit of happiness;

    -That the freedom to own, use, exchange, control, protect, and freely dispose of property is a natural, necessary and inseparable extension of the individual's unalienable rights;

    -That the legitimate function of government is to secure these rights through the preservation of domestic tranquility, the maintenance of a strong national defense, and the promotion of equal justice for all;

   - That history makes clear that left unchecked, it is the nature of government to usurp the liberty of its citizens and eventually become a major violator of the people's rights; and

    -That, therefore, it is essential to bind government with the chains of the Constitution and carefully divide and jealously limit government powers to those assigned by the consent of the governed.

I have repeatedly asked folks to go and check out the CP website and read the whole platform.  I’m not sure how many have.  But I think this is important, and so in the coming days I will post portions of that party platform here.  I don’t know that anyone will read this either, but at least I can say I tried. 

There Are More Than Two Choices!

In the past two weeks I've heard a lot of comments about the recent debates; first the Romney/Obama debate, and then last night's Ryan/Biden skirmish.  And the one comment I've heard over and over is, "I can't stand either one of them."  And yet, in the end, most of these people will force themselves to vote for one or the other, the one they dislike the least, the one the loathe the least, the one they think will do the least amount of damage.

Folks, there are more than two choices!

I know I've said all this before, but it's simply infuriating to see so many people blindly follow the lie that only a Republican or Democrat can receive our vote.  Who ever said it had to be one or the other.  It's like asking, "Would you rather sit in an electric chair or get a lethal injection?"  How about if I don't take either?!  I don't want to die!  And yet by buying into the two-party-only mentality we are slowly killing our nation. 

It's time for real change. There are more than two choices, and if all the folks who are "fed up" with the two options we have would get behind a solid third choice, we could see that real change happen.  But as I've said, I've been through all that before in this space.  So let me just pass you on to someone else.

Here is an excellent article written nearly two years ago by Mary Starrett, a former Constitution Party Communications Director.  I hope she won't mind my reposting it here.  You can see the original at the Constitution Party website. 

The Definition of Insanity

...is repeating the same behavior and expecting different results. We must be certifiable because that’s what we did in 2000, again in 2004 and once more in 2008.

Americans held their noses and voted for two candidates who were identical on issues like gun control, allowing illegal immigration, shutting down free speech, taking tax payer money to hand out to “banksters” and ignoring the Constitution on virtually every issue.

Americans who consider themselves “conservative” by and large voted for Republican senator John McCain even though he lined up with his Democratic opponent Obama on those issues and more. Many, when asked why they didn’t cast their vote for Constitution Party presidential candidate Chuck Baldwin said they didn’t want to “waste” their vote.

So they voted for a man who offered what they didn’t want, so they wouldn’t get a man who offered what they didn’t want..

Huh?

That kind of reasoning is illustrated by looking back to what happened several years ago. Republicans controlled both the executive and legislative branches of government for most of Bush’s last four years. That was the first time the Grand Old Party’s been in charge to that degree for almost 50 years. You’d think that would be a slam-dunk for our side. No such luck. In the last few years of a supposedly “conservative” administration, we watched as First Amendment, Second Amendment and Fourth Amendment guarantees were slowly eroded.

We wanted to make sure the carnage of abortion stopped - so we voted for a Republican. The killing continued.

We longed for a president who’d stand up for our God-given Second Amendment rights. Instead we got a president who systematically made keeping and bearing arms more difficult.

We voted for a Republican because we wanted a reigning-in of federal spending. We got the most bloated federal budget in the history of the Republic, that is, until President Obama took over.

No longer the party of fiscal discipline, the R’s become de facto pig farmers with all the pork projects they allowed in the past and currently when they approved of Obama’s “stimulus” plan.

We voted for and elected a Republican twice because we wanted better schools for our children. Instead we got the most intrusive federal program to date in a scheme called "No Child Left (Alone) Behind"- President Bush’s embarrassing legacy.

Yes, the GOP had a wonderful opportunity to get us back on track. They blew it. President Bush left us with a patently un-Constitutional Medicare prescription entitlement debacle .That was one program even the Democrats would have had a hard time pushing. To make matters worse, you paid, with your hard-earned tax dollars, over $12.5 million for 30 second TV commercials "explaining" the "benefit" to older Americans. 

This was nothing but a shameless election year ploy to get you to think the president, in all his altruism had you covered on the medicine front. By the by, just WHERE in the Constitution does it say the federal government has the authority to take your money and then redistribute it to pay for drugs that oftentimes make people sicker than they were before they started taking them?

During the last Democratic administration when Clinton was in office and the government was divided, we saw less damage done to the country in terms of liberties lost. Hard to believe we can say that of the Clinton administration.

7 years ago, Bush spoke of "bringing democracy and freedom" to the people of Iraq. I found that odd. When Bush had the opportunity to promote "democracy and freedom" for the free Chinese in Taiwan he sided with the brutal regime in Beijing and told the Taiwanese to stand down in their efforts at free elections. The regime he defended at the expense of the tiny island was the same one that threatened to lob missiles at Los Angeles a few years back and the same one that first held a US military jet hostage then dismantled it looking for spy secrets.

The moral imperative says we should not cast a vote for a candidate who does not represent our beliefs. We will not see a change in the status quo as long as Americans continue to believe they’re "wasting" their votes by voting for someone who represents them.

Many "wasted’ their vote the last time, when they voted for Bush and then McCain. Remember, if we continue to repeat the same behavior expecting different results, then we are truly insane.

And the lesser of two evils is still…evil.

I Signed Up To Die

I’m weird.  Those who know me are thinking, “Duh.”  Those who don’t know me probably don’t care.  But you might need to know that little fact to understand the rest of this post.  I’m weird. What moves me often means nothing to others, and vice-versa.

That has a lot of implications, and applies to a lot of areas of my life, but for the moment we’re going to look at my taste in music.  It’s varied to say the least.  I’ve mentioned this before, but I think I’m the only pastor I know of who collects antique hymnals but enjoys loud Christians rock music, as well as a handful of “reformed” rappers.  It’ that later category that I’m thinking of this morning.

I’ve been a big fan of Flame, Shai Linne and Lecrae for several years now.  Five or six years ago I attended a conference in St. Louis and the host pastor introduced a young man named Marcus Gray, aka Flame, who was a member of his church at the time.  I met him briefly and was intrigued enough to pick up one of his CDs.  The rest is history.

Anyway, through those guys, I’ve also been introduce to a rapper who goes by This’l.  I liked what I heard from him, and he’s another of my St. Louis boys, so I picked up a CD called Beautiful Monster and I’ve been enjoying it.  But one song actually moved me to tears this morning.  Seriously.  I told you I was weird. 

The song is called “I Signed Up to Die,” and it simply tells the story of several people who faced death because of their faith in Christ.  When asked by their killers, “aren’t you going to beg,” or “are you going to convert,” the response was “No, I signed up to die!”

What moved me to tears was twofold.  One, I know enough about church history and even what’s going on today to know that these are not just stories.  People die for their faith every day.  Martyrs are made every minute.  It’s one reason why over the years we’ve appreciated the ministry of Voice of the Martyrs so much.  The church needs to be reminded, needs to hear these stories, needs to be challenged to support our persecuted brethren around the world.  Thinking of all that brings an emotional response for me.

And two, I’m suddenly confronted by my own commitment to Christ.  We live in this world that, whether we realize it or not, has been heavily influenced by the whole prosperity gospel thing.  We may not teach it openly, but simply by being born in America, living with the blessings we have, we are subtly lured into this whole Gospel = American Dream kind of thinking.  We think we should spend our lives in this world in comfort, enjoying the earthly blessings of God, because we think we deserve it, etc.  

This song reminds me that our commitment to Christ should mean that we signed up to die.  Not that we have some martyr complex, that we seek out persecution, that we do foolish things to bring it on ourselves.  But we should know that to live for Christ is to live at odds with this world; to live for Christ is to be an enemy of the world; and the world will not like it.

When I first heard the song, as those lyrics poured into my ears and my heart at the same time, I was suddenly reminded of another set of words.  These were spoken by missionary and itinerant preacher Paul Washer as he spoke of our commitment to Christ and His demands on us.  He said:

“What does he demand from us and the answer is everything…This is what it will cost you: your life; because Jesus only promised you two things: a cross to die on and eternal life.  He is everything or He is nothing.” 

Do we have that kind of commitment?  Can we honestly say that we’ve signed up to die, even in the face of those who would bring that death to reality?  These thoughts are what caused me to tear up in my truck as I drove in to town.  Again, I know I’m weird, and what moves me may have no affect on you at all.  But here is the song from This’l as well as a short video of Bro. Washer (this particular quote is at about 3:10).  I pray that one or both will be a blessing and a challenge to you today.  

 (Note: I tried to find a video with lyrics, but sadly the lyrics here are harder to read than for some to hear.  If you want to read the whole set of lyrics, try here).

Homeschooler Moment #15

I don't normally do these little family vingettes back to back, but this was too good to pass up.  Our oldest daughter is now a junior in college, where she also works in the library.  She was visiting with another student who was also working there, and the subject of homeschooling came up. LoriAnn admitted that she was homeschooled.

Her friend looked at her in surprise and said, "You were homeschooled? But you seem so normal!"

Not sure if that was a compliment or an insult to homeschoolers, but it was pretty funny nonetheless.  Even after they leave home, the homeschooler moments just keep going, and going, and...

Homeschooler Moment #14

I know that some say homeschoolers are “over protected,” but personally I love that our kids still have a sense of innocence.  They are aware of the evils of the world, because they know the doctrine of man’s depravity, but when it comes to many of the “cultural” issues that most kids have thrown in their face until they are immune to it, our kids are blissfully unaware.  

For example, while they’ve heard the name “Justin Bieber,” I don’t think they could name a single song.  Some see that as being “out of touch,” I see it as a mercy and plain old good taste.

Anyway, sometimes this leads to a little humor.  Nathanael overheard that Mac Powell, lead singer of his favorite band Third Day, was going to be singing at a late night rodeo somewhere nearby.  He wanted to know if we could find out and go.  In case you don’t know, Mr. Powell has recently released a solo country (*cough..hack*) record, and is doing a few solo dates.  But because I love my son, I told him I would check it out.

As it turns out, he’s not singing at a rodeo.  He’s appearing at a club called Midnight Rodeo.  The fact that my son heard “midnight rodeo” and immediately thought of a late night bull riding/calf roping event, rather than a night club featuring “sexy buns night” (it’s true), thrills me.  (I'll save any commentary regarding my mixed feelings about a "Christian" artist appearing at such a venue for another time).

Again, I don’t want my kids to be naïve.  They know more about the world and its evils than I really want them to.  They have a realistic understanding of what it means to be in a world dominated by sin.  But the fact that they still have that touch of innocence, even as upper teens, is refreshing.  Maybe I’m the naïve one, but I hope they never lose that. 

With All Creation Sing

Several years ago I heard Paul Washer speak at a conference, and he was talking about the vileness of our sin in general.  In the process he was pointing out the fact that the rest of creation obeys God readily, except for man.

He said: God said to the stars, each of which is large enough to consume a dozen of our suns, "You go there, and you will be called this, and you stay there until I tell you otherwise."  And the starts obeyed.  He said to the planets, "you go there, and will be this color, and will go in this path, and will reflect light in just this way, and you continue to do all that until I tell you otherwise."  And they obeyed him.

 And He said to the mountains, arise and come forth and they obeyed and rose up out of the ground.  And He said to the valleys, "Cast yourself down" and they obeyed Him.  He said to the monsters of the deep dance in this way, and they danced in obedience.  And then he said to you come follow me, and you said, "No!"

Washer concluded by saying: Our sin is so horrible, so vile, such a blight on creation that when you take you first step into hell, all of creation will rejoice because God finally got rid of you!

Again, the point was focusing on the depravity of man, and it certainly highlights that.  Recently I was thinking about this quote again in terms of worship.  All of creation points to God.  All of creation does its job “declaring His glory.”  Only man is reluctant to do so.  Amazing when you consider that only man knows the glory of redemption.  How sad that we would be so slow to worship.

Thinking along those lines prompted me to write the following.  I hope it serves as an encouragement for all of us to take our place along side the rest of creation is making His name known, as we should. (And for the record, the photos here were taken by my son, Nathanael.)

With All Creation Sing  

The beauty of the rising sun

The splendor as it sets

All sing the praises of the One

Who gave us life and breath

We see His hand in morning mists

His blessings in the rain

We see in Him all things subsist

And honor’s due His name

All heav’n and earth His pow’r acclaims

To Him all nature sings

Yet man alone in sinful shame

Reluctant praise we bring

Remind us, Lord, about Your grace

How in Christ we’re restored.

Then move our hearts to seek Your face

To worship and adore.

Then with all creatures great and small

With land and sea and sky

We’ll join our voices with them all

Your name to glorify

copyright 2012 Servantheart Music

Go Ahead, Have a Slice

I’m in the minority on a lot of things.  At least it seems that way.  A Conservative, Reformed, Homeschooling pastor who also loves Christian rock music, NASCAR, and guns.  Odd, I know.  In fact, one time our daughter was talking with some folks and when they found out she was a pastor’s kid and a homeschooler, they said, “Wow, you’re really on the fringe!”

But as odd as I may be, there is at least one area in which I am solidly in the majority:  Pizza Lover!  94 percent of Americans eat pizza regularly, according to some random statistic; so that makes me just a regular guy.  Of course, although most eat it regularly, many may not be quite as fanatical as our family.  

Between frozen and restaurant versions, we often have pizza 2-3 times a week.  Add in a quick slice for lunch, and I guess I eat pizza more than a “regularly.”  In fact, we have frozen pizzas every Sunday for lunch. We decided a long time ago that if this is a day of rest, mom should get to rest as well.  Easy cooking, easy clean-up; pizza is the answer.   

I can’t prove this, but I believe pizza will be a main part of the “marriage feast” in heaven.  Just my hopeful belief, since pizza isn’t exactly mentioned in the Bible.  (However, if you can tolerate this borderline sacrilegious list, someone had some fun replacing the word “peace” with “pizza” and came up with some great verses!)

Anyway, October is National Pizza Month.  In honor of that celebration, I have resolved to eat as much pizza as possible.  Which makes this no different than any other month, it just gives justification to my habit.  Of course, this also means I have to make the 35 mile trip to the nearest Imo’s Pizza, which is the absolute best pizza on the planet.  But, a man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do.

To help you celebrate, here are a couple of fun things to do.

Here’s a list of some interesting pizza facts.

Here’s a fun little online pizza trivia game.

And of course, the most fun song about food, sung by food, every made.  Pizza Angel: