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Friday, January 16, 2015

From Selma to Montgomery, the freedom march that changed our nation


26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?[a] 28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.



Last evening my wife and I decided to attend the showing of the movie Selma. It is a movie about a black leader and a man of God who decided to heed the call of God and risk his life and the lives of others to bring to the public's attention the powerful impact of institutional racism on the black man and woman.

I grew up in the 1960's. It was a most turbulent time for us who did so. I would have to say that growing up in this period was the defining moment for America. It was a time when our eyes were enlightened by the horrors of racism.

From the lynchings of innocent black people to the denial of their voting rights by the local white establishment we witness for the first time those horrors through the eyes of a man of God who chose to win this battle, not with a colt 45, but through peaceful marches.

I remember reading about the Selma marches and watching as the white establishment stood on the famous Edmund Pettus Bridge with their barb wire wrapped clubs, their gas masks on, waiting for the order to attack and disperse the crowd of white, black people who were there because they were moved by the horrific situation of racism in the south.

Just before this movie came out my wife, son and I had a chance to tour the Civil Rights Museum in Montgomery, Alabama where we got the chance to read the stories of the men and woman, black and white, whose lives were taken away all in the name of fighting for the same rights that whites have had the privilege of experiencing. To think in the 60's we had separate lodging for blacks and whites, separate wash rooms, and separate educational institutions seems unimaginable to me today.

Yet, if my own Hopkins High school can be used as an example there were no blacks that I was aware of who attended that school in 1974, but today Hopkins is fully integrated with a vast array of races getting the education they never would have received in the 60's

We have made strides over the years, but the battle is not done. There is another horrific institution that continues to be a killing machine for babies of all races. It started out as a innocent sounding group called the American Birth Control League by Margaret Sanger, but this 'league' is anything but innocent. To illustrate this I am posting the video Maarfa21 and encourage you to view it when you have time:http://youtu.be/0eWxCRReTV4 As you watch this video you will notice that some very famous families who have done good became the primary contributors of this organization.
If we are serious in ending racism then we need to write our Congressman and demand that Planned Parenthood be unfunded and abortions be brought to an end.

As we honor the work of Martin Luther King, Jr. I encourage you to go see the movie Selma. The work of this movement woke up America to the dangers of racism.
























Sunday, January 11, 2015

If ever there was someone who deserved to carry a grudge it was Louie Zamperini



Proverbs 17:22A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.



Bullied as a kid
Disciplined harshly by his earthly father
laughed at by his older brother
Chased after by the local police
for
petty crimes

After years of preparation and encouragement of his running ability
Louie went to the Olympic games
where he was bunched in by other runners
and 
spiked in his ankles
yet
he never gave up and finished the race with bloodied ankles and all

When he enlisted in the service and was assigned to a bombardier 
he survived multiple days in a life raft
with two survivors 
in
sharp infested waters
shot at by Japanese war planes
until their raft found land
the wrong island
surrounded by gun toting Japanese who
cruelly beat him
and
At the encouragement of a Japanese superior 
named Bird
he was beaten to a bloodied pulp
at the slightest indiscretion
yet
Louie never gave up his will to live

through the life of his bombardier partner
he discovered that there was a man 
who suffered far worse than he
a man who performed miracles and spoke many truths from the bible
a man that was God's son
who came to reconcile the world
to give hope to everyone 
that called upon his name
Jesus gave him the will to live
and
to forgive his captors
to forgive even the Bird who was the cause of most of his grief
God
wants us to live in harmony  with those we consider our enemies
What we consider impossible  to do as humans

Jesus helps us do the impossible
and help you to forgive past relationships
and
help heal those past sour friendships
that cause bitterness to take root

Louie Zamperini had every right to remain bitter
yet, 
through the power of Jesus Christ 
he turned to the Cross and laid down his bitterness
his hatred
and gave it all to God

and when the Olympic games came to Japan 
he carried the torch 
as thousands of Japanese bystanders 
cheered him on
Now that is the power of forgiveness!!

Wednesday, January 7, 2015

Four civil rights leaders, opposite and divergent styles of leading




21Then Peter came and said to Him, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?" 22Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.… Matthew 18:21


Our family just recently returned from Alabama where we celebrated the holiday with our Sister-in-law and her husband in the town of Athen's, Alabama, just outside of Huntsville. Toward the end of our stay my wife, son and I traveled to the deep south toward the Gulf shores.

We stopped in Montgomery, Alabama and toured the famed Civil Rights Museum. This region is filled with history and the birthplace of the modern Civil Rights movement.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4h-HReF-y8

Martin Luther King, Jr. and Ralph Abernathy believed in peaceful demonstrations that would eventually shed light on how evil racism in the south really was. Dr. King began preaching from a tiny baptist church in Montgomery which to this day had been restored and open to tours.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_ZgSK9yIbk At this link I included Dr. King's famous' I have a dream speech.'

As I studied Dr. King I realized that he incorporated many of the qualities of Christ into his day to day ministry. I am sure that Dr. King started out in his ministry perfectly content to preach to gospel in a simple church, but when God called him to right a social injustice he got up and left his comfort zone and answered the call. Leaving the Pulpit meant risking life and limb for not only himself, but those who joined him in these peaceful demonstrations. Answering the call meant that he could no longer avoid the voice of God within for he knew that heaven was crying for these social injustices.

Today, we have one more social injustice that needs to be right once and for all. It is the social injustice caused by America's number one killing machine, Planned Parenthood. Started out as the Birth control movement by Margaret Sanger, Planned Parenthood evolved into the biggest killing machine of African American babies by placing these clinics in poor neighborhoods. If you want to see what kind of woman Margaret Sanger was I encourage you to watch this video of a news interview with her. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HsrOPDdbTzM

I urge the Republican party to do the right thing and de-fund this massive killing machine. De-funding Planned Parenthood would save millions every year. To get a glimpse of the evils of the abortion machine I encourage you to watch Maafa 21 at this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0eWxCRReTV4

If we truly care about people, regardless of race, creed and disability we must stand up for them. 

Are you willing to step out of your comfort zone to help correct this social injustice.  I encourage you to write your congressional representatives and urge them to de-fund this organization and remind them that we have a much better alternative, adoption.

Finally, I encourage everyone to go on a Civil rights tour of Montgomery, Alabama, the birthplace of the modern civil rights movement.