New atheist billboard goes up in Charleston, SC

The best thing about the United States is its rich mixture of people. It is reported that the United States has a greater number of religious groups than any other country in the world. I know this is an unusual stance by a Christian, but I by in large fundamentally believe that no Religious belief should be FORCED on a person. Now this does not mean that parents shouldn’t expose their offspring to what they believe (Proverbs 22:6), but in all my studies of the Bible, I don’t see where Jesus or GOD, FORCED themselves on anyone. There were a few people who were persuaded to follow God's instructions, but God still gave them the choice. The conversion to becoming a Christian is a conversion of the heart brought about from being exposed to and accepting the truth of Jesus Christ. However, God does not force people to except him, love him, trust, he give us that choice. We can examine the scriptures, historical and scientific evidence and make up our own minds. He will continue to expose us to the truth of our choices to living with or without him, that part of his character.

So we have two camps believers and non-believes. We need to be mindful that all believers used to be non-believers. So let us remember the roads we once traveled, until we decided to stop doing life our way. Anyway, there are people of both camps that are in prison. There are people in both camps that are divorced. There are people in both camps that cheat on their taxes. There are also people in both camps who are productive members of society, who raise their families under the best of their abilities. No matter what you believe, think we all want good schools, safe neighborhoods, good health and the right to achieve our goals to the best of our abilities. There are people of both camps that are famous artists, writers, leaders, philanthropists, activists, composers, actors, musicians and scientists. While there are many that think science is almost always anti-God. However, it is known that Albert Einstein was a believer. Charles Darwin, by his own admission, was never an atheist. In fact his own words indicate that, at least on some occasions, he gravitated toward a belief in God. He said "In my most extreme fluctuations I have never been an atheist in the sense of denying the existence of God." (Darwin, Francis, The Life of Charles Darwin. London: Tiger Books,1995, 55.). The beautiful part of living in the United States is that we do have the freedom to explore our beliefs without a government mandate to adhere any particular one or any at all. This is the true meaning of “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;”  Though, I always find it strange that more emphasis is put on the former part of the statement than the latter.

The belief in God, no matter the religion is based on faith, and sometimes forced indoctrination.. There are several writings, scripture, examples and verses on this matter. Our faith is not alone what we believe, but what we do with what we believe. In the Bible, in the book of James you can find these words “In the same way faith, if it doesn't have works, is dead by itself.” As Christians we often speak often of the grace of God, but how to we achieve His grace, if we don’t exercise our faith. I subscribe to the Baptist branch of Christianity generally because of it value of religion freedom. The English philosopher John Locke described our faith well we he said “The Baptists were the first propounders of absolute liberty, just and true liberty, equal and impartial liberty.” That freedom is a belief to take pride in and one of the core values of our nation. This statement it says that for Baptist (or those who subscribe to religious freedom), we are not only merely tolerant or appreciative of others, but that we expect this freedom in is broadest and truest sense. We as Americans demand unrestricted religious freedom for ourselves and for all other be they Christian, Hindu, Catholic, Jewish, Humanist, Muslim, Wiccan, Atheist, Agnostic, New Age, Scientologist, Native American, Unitarian Universalist, or questioning seeker.

So when you see that sign ..Remember Thank God you live in America...and not China, Also view it as having lots of work yet to do for HIS kingdom.

Victor Swindell

LET A MAN EXAMINE HIMSELF

In church every second Sunday we hear part of this scripture passage as part of communion Sunday. The Lord asks that we take an honest look at ourselves to realize just who we really are, and how we really are. We should all take time to take an honest evaluation of ourselves to see what we need to improve. Students are given test and exams so that they can see exactly what they have and haven’t mastered. Most Employers give their employees some type of Year-End-Evaluation so that the employee can see exactly how they are performing in the company and what areas they can improve in. It is my fundamental belief that God puts us through situation to test our faith and give us the opportunity to mature in our faith. (Romans 5:3-5, James 1:-2-4)

Socrates, the Greek philosopher said “The unexamined life is not worth living.” The sad thing is that most people evade leading an examined life. It’s not that they don’t have time or make time. They actively avoid examining their lives for fear of what they will discover. Some people are afraid to take an honest look in the mirror to see them selves for what they really are. It’s said to hear people say a person is acting the say way they were 20 years ago, and not meaning this as a positive appraisal.

People who do examine their lives, who think about where they’ve been, how they got here, and where they’re going, are much happier people. No has all the answers. And no one’s life is free from trouble and strife. But those who have some sense of where they belong in the God’s universe also have a context for understanding how all the elements of their life fit together.

Anyone who desires to be the person that God wants us to be should actively exam themselves. Take a look the areas of your life and measure how much or how little you have improved in them.

Is your faith in God stronger, weaker or the same as it was last year or even 5, or 10 years ago?
Is your knowledge of God’s word stronger, weaker or the same as it was last year, or even 5 or 10 years ago?
Is your Prayer Service /Bible Study attendance stronger, weaker or the same as it was last year, or even 5 or 10 years ago?
Is your Sunday school attendance stronger, weaker or the same as it was last year, or even 5 or 10 years ago?
Is you’re your ability to forgive others who have wronged you stronger, weaker or the same as it was last year, or even 5 or 10 years ago? (Are you still holding something against someone?)
Is you’re your ability to manage your money stronger, weaker or the same as it was last year, or even 5 or 10 years ago?
Are you committing the same sins that you were doing last year, or even 5 or 10 years ago?
Is your ability to give the way God wants you to stronger, weaker or the same as it was last year, or even 5 or 10 years ago?
Is your ability to control your tongue stronger, weaker or the same as it was last year, or even 5 or 10 years ago?
Is your ability to put God first in all area of your life stronger, weaker or the same as it was last year, or even 5 or 10 years ago?
How to you measure up in Worshiping only God, Respecting all people, Humility, Honesty, Morality, Generosity, Patience, Righteousness (think about that one)

I’m sure you can think of more than I’ve listed here and if these were Courses in the School of God what would be your God Point Average (Honestly ) This is why it’s necessary to really look at ourselves and ask God to open our hearts and minds to change to his ways, and actively seek to make changes in our lives.

The unexamined life is a dangerous thing. We all have moments of frustration and doubt, wishing we had been better than we are at times. At these times, these moments reinforce how vital it is to take charge of our lives, to make the changes necessary as directed by the Holy Spirit. One of Jesus’ missions was to encourage and assist you with examining your life and strengthening your own spiritual and natural abilities to guide yourself to fulfillment.
Today is a new chapter in your life, and President Obama (as God did) as urged us to put way childish ways. Many children only think about what they want, and not the greater good. It’s time to ask ourselves what does God want of me. So, I urge you to examine yourself and consider what it is that is challenging you and/or what it is that you wish to accomplish with your life, then, ask the Lord to help you so that by doing so we can make this world a better place, by reflecting his will.

My thanks to Mark who gave me the idea for this article.

Making it in 2009

Think back to December 2006. Remember all the things you wanted to have accomplished? How did you do? Are those things still on your list?

Well, now we’ve just finished with 2008. We’re now all making the new year’s resolutions that will last to mid-January— get control of our finances, lose X amount of pounds, maybe even read or write a book. Statistics show that most of us will quit before we get anywhere close to those objectives without designing a plan.

This year, set a goal to succeed.

If you had stuck with the goals you made last year, then you would already be done. Wow! 365 days went by quickly, and so will this year, so don’t let the time get away from you. The sooner you make something part of your routine, the less you’ll notice that you’re doing it, and the quicker you’ll be finished.

Don’t make a goal and then look at it as something you have to do. That’s the wrong attitude. Soon you’ll come to resent doing the thing that is supposed to make you better. Remember that every time you pay off a debt, get on the treadmill, or do something else productive, you become a better person and get closer to your target.

Think about when you graduated from college. You were used to going to bed at midnight or later. But now that you have a job, you need to get up earlier. So you start going to bed at 10 or even 9:30 p.m. You didn’t like it at first, and it took some adjusting. But now you’ve done it so much that you don’t even notice. It’s part of your routine.

Getting out of debt, losing weight, or anything else is the same way. Do it for a while, and it goes from being difficult to being a bother to just another thing. By the time beating debt becomes just another thing, you are reaping the rewards from it, which makes the process fun. And when it’s fun, the year passes quickly.

Here are six basic strategies you can do to make it

1. Figured out your motivation, which is rooted in your values.
2. Increased your skills.
3. Enlisted the help of family, friends and colleagues.
4. Steered clear of social events and people who might sabotage your goals.
5. Created an environment that is conductive to success.
6. Rewarded yourself for reaching milestones.