A Nation Divided Against Itself Can Not Stand! Part 1

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Americans, change, Conservatives, constitution, Cruz, democrats, divisions, election 2016, Founders, history, Liberals, obama, Republicans, Trump

A house divided against itself cannot stand.

It’s written in the Bible (Mark 3:24-25), and it is the foundation of one of President Abraham Lincoln’s most important speeches.

On June 16, 1858 more than 1,000 delegates met in the Springfield, Illinois, statehouse for the Republican State Convention. At 5:00 p.m. they chose Abraham Lincoln as their candidate for the U.S. Senate, running against Democrat Stephen A. Douglas. At 8:00 p.m. Lincoln delivered this address to his Republican colleagues in the Hall of Representatives. The title reflects part of the speech’s introduction, “A house divided against itself cannot stand,” a concept familiar to Lincoln’s audience as a statement by Jesus recorded in all three synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke). House Divided Speech, Springfield, Illinois, June 16, 1858. Read more HERE.

Decades later, running on a platform that publicly declared his intention to “fundamentally change America,” against the wishes of millions of Americans, President Obama has succeeded in is goal to piece by piece dismantle and disrespect the very foundation of our nation: our Constitution and the rule of law.

A house divided against itself cannot stand.

A Historical background via Obama the Great Divider, by J. Robert Smith

 “Throughout our nation’s history, division has been the rule; unity, the exception.  That goes back to the Revolution.  When it was clear to the Founders and outraged colonists that the British had no interest in redressing their grievances, they elected to divide, to fight for independence.

“Lucky for us and the world that they chose to do so. 

“Today, many Americans aren’t acquainted with the fact that colonists weren’t unanimous for independence.  A sizeable minority — Tories — backed the Crown.  They supported British troops and some fought alongside them. 

“The nation’s early, formative political era was marked by sharp divisions.  Federalists versus Jeffersonians.  Pro-Jackson versus Anti-Jackson factions.  Disputes over slavery were ongoing.  There was a whiskey rebellion and another war with the British.

“By the mid 1800s, the nation divided into sections and fought a civil war.  That, assuredly, was a tragic division.  620,000 military casualties, north and south, say so.  A ravaged South and a depleted North say so, too. 

“But as Lincoln stated, the war came, despite efforts at reconciliation.  The good that resulted from the war was the abolition of slavery.  And though it would take another hundred years, and yet more divisions and trials, abolition set African-Americans on the path to gaining their full God-given rights.  

“In the 20^th Century, Americans divided about other wars as well.  World Wars I and II, Vietnam and the Iraq War.  Toward the end, they divided about the Cold War.  

“And they’ve divided about the New Deal, the Fair Deal, The Great Society and the Reagan Revolution.  They’ve divided culturally, starting in the 1960s, over drugs, sex and rock and roll.  They’ve divided over abortion.

“As we look back over the long arc of the nation’s history, we see that from divisions came resolutions.  Freedom, more often than not, was advanced.  Our rights better secured.  Our nation, strengthened.   

“We live in a time of momentous divisions.  Many of us will not live to see the resolutions completely.  Since the early part of the 20^th Century, a great conflict has not only been playing out abroad, but at home, between statism and freedom. 

“At home, the statists – call them progressives, liberals or leftists – have worked diligently to advance government, to centralize authority in a political elite and bureaucracy and to, thereby, abridge the rights of the individual.  They dismiss the original intent that undergirds the Constitution, claiming a right to make interpretations that are frequently aimed at pressing their causes and increasing their power.  Many disdain our values, faith and traditions.

“Where shall we find common ground with the statists?  Compromise?  Compromise must invariably lead to less, not more, freedom.  And wasn’t that tried by our parents’ and grandparents’ generations?  Aren’t we, in part, struggling against a looming tyranny – albeit a soft tyranny – because of the good will and accommodations of our predecessors? 

Though ideological opponents, these two responsible leaders were also friends.

“Note, too, that overseas, in the 20^th Century and now, tyrants, established or aspiring, all sought or seek unity.  Unity under their rule in the service of the state.  Inevitably, they use force to achieve that end.  Lenin, Stalin, Hitler, Mussolini, Mao, Pol Pot and an assortment of lesser dictators all bullied, imprisoned, maimed or killed millions who failed to unite with their will. 

“Today, the Castro brothers are still at it.  Hugo Chavez is attempting it in Venezuela.  The mullahs are at it in Iran.  Kim Jong-Il has been at it in North Korea.  So are the Chinese.  Putin isn’t far from reasserting unity in service to the Russian state. 

“In our nation, we are fortunate that the Founders had great insight into human nature and the wisdom to arrange our government in ways that divided and authority.   They instituted checks and balances to thwart the tyranny of any faction, or combination of factions, to impose unity on us. 

“In the last ninety years, the barriers erected by the Founders to protect us from the tyranny of unity have been breached.  But they still stand.  It falls to us to repair and strengthen those barriers.  To reclaim the full measure of freedom which is our birthright and was intended us by the Founders.  And pass on that freedom to our children and theirs.” Read more HERE

If you listen to both Hillary and Bernie, they are so angry, so victimized, so … dead set on the next chapter in the self-destruction of America, that cannot or will not change course. Even the “driveby” media has nothing good to say, nothing hopeful, nothing uplifting to point to in anything going on. MORE coming soon.

 

 

 

Let’s Go Fishing!

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aquarium building, broken, change, church, Fishers of men, Fishing, hope, Jesus, real change

Have you noticed that civilization, as we know it in the USA, is rapidly declining? While there may be many superficial reasons for this, there is one fundamental reason: God has been systematically exiled.

All negative statistics are up: teenage pregnancies, teenage abortions, murders, suicides … just about every indicator of negative behavior trends shows we are in trouble. But, God is shunned as “Old Fahioned.”

The issues that confront America in 2013 and onward, are not political issues, but moral issues. Many Americans remember such things as prayer in schools (non-specific & non-threatening), teachers using rulers to “regulate” classroom behavior, two-parent (male & female) households, an orderly society with rules that usually worked, but even when they didn’t, it was the exception, not the rule.

I am part of the generation that helped to tear down those rules and that framework, the Baby Boomers. It’s not so bad that we tore things down, but we FAILED to put anything in place to maintain or adjust the social framework. Without BOUNDARIES, society falls into chaos. This is where we are today. Anything goes … except God’s ways.

I like to play with electronics and even put furniture together. Most items seem to be pretty self-explanatory … except for the leftover screws! My pattern is, when all else fails, read the directions.

America’s people are broken. Our communities are broken. Our schools are broken. Our government is badly broken. In fact, many of our churches are broken. Rather than celebrating the greatest love ever shown to mankind and eagerly sharing it with everyone we meet, we mistakenly tend ourselves & our buildings while lost people suffer. Many churches are so busy building and tending their “aquarium,” they have forgotten about “fishing for Men.” Instead of casting our nets into the deep river teaming with fish, we have become like the Dead Sea, keeping what we find for ourselves. Maybe it’s time to find the “directions” and READ THEM … again! Two thirds of GOD is GO!

America’s Declaration of Independence

America’s Constitution

and

the ULTIMATE INSTRUCTION BOOK

Jesus says, “Give me an hour and I’ll change your life!”
“What will we do?” Peter asks.
“Change the world!”

Are you ready?

Praiseworthy Deeds

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change, deeds, God, praiseworhty

I will sing to the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord!
GOD has made my life a testimony, a praiseworthy deed of the Lord,
That we might Hope in HIM; that we might hope in Him,
And in the day of battle we will fight Knowing we stand in His might …

Armed and ready, armed and ready, armed and ready for war!
Armed and ready, armed and ready, armed and ready for war!

Inspired by Psalm 78

Are YOU a “praiseworthy deed of the Lord? For those who have known you for some time, is there any evidence of change for the better?

If we want to see a change in our nation, in our government, in our own lives, we must first admit our need for help.To my mind, that means admitting it to the only one significantly bigger than me – GOD! Then asking Him to make the necessary changes as HE sees fit … not as I see fit!

Become a Praiseworthy Deed of the Lord, so our kids and grandkids can HOPE in GOD …

Chuck Colson, Nixon ‘hatchet man’ turned evangelist, dies at 80

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change

Chuck Colson founded Prison Fellowship Ministries after he was sent to prison for obstructing justice in the Watergate affair.

By TIM WEINER

updated 1 hour 16 minutes ago

Charles W. Colson, who served as a political saboteur for President Richard M. Nixon, masterminded some of the dirty tricks that led to the president’s downfall, then emerged from prison to become an important evangelical leader, saying he had been “born again,” died Saturday. He was 80.

The cause was complications resulting from a brain hemorrhage, according to a statement from Prison Fellowship Ministries, which Mr. Colson founded in Lansdowne, Va.

Mr. Colson had brain surgery to remove a clot after becoming ill on March 30 while speaking at a conference, according to Jim Liske, the group’s chief executive.

Mr. Colson was sent to prison after pleading guilty to obstructing justice in the Watergate affair. After having what he called his religious awakening behind bars, he spent much of the rest of his life ministering to prisoners, preaching the Gospels and helping to forge a coalition among Republican politicians, evangelical church leaders and Roman Catholic conservatives, helping to change the very dynamics of American politics.

It was a remarkable reversal.

‘Lightning rod’ for Nixon’s frustrations

Mr. Colson was a 38-year-old Washington lawyer when he joined the Nixon White House as a special counsel in November 1969. He quickly caught the president’s eye. His “instinct for the political jugular and his ability to get things done made him a lightning rod for my own frustrations,” Nixon wrote in his memoirs. In 1970, the president made him his “political point man” for “imaginative dirty tricks.”

“When I complained to Colson, I felt confident that something would be done,” Nixon wrote. “I was rarely disappointed.” … MORE HERE

Wikileaks? Yes we have no Obama! (via Boudica BPI Weblog)

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2012-elections, America, barack-obama, change, community-organizer, Democrat, failure, fraud, government, government-corruption, government-deception, government-dependency, government-failure, government-regulation, government-spending, job-killing, obama, obama-administration, obamacare, obamunism, President Obama, uncategorized, unemployment, USA, wikileaks

Read Obama – Wikileaks Via The Mad Jewess BARACK OBAMA – THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING PRESIDENT … Read More

via Boudica BPI Weblog

Lloyd Marcus at American Thinker (via Diary of a Mad Conservative)

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"life lessons", allen-west, America, america-2, American, American Conservative, American Heroes, American history, American Interests, American Moral Character, American Morality, american-thinker, Blog, Building Character, campaign, change, character training, Committment, congress-2, consequences, Conservative opinion, conservative-blog-network, Conservatives, Democrat, democrats, democrats-2, DO SOMETHING!, economics, economy, education, elections, finances, fiscal responsibility, GET INVOLVED, Helping others, Hope * Change, Human nature, Human Rights, liberalsim, Limited Government, lloyd-marcus, maxine-waters, media, Military appreciation, obama, politics-2, privileged-status, Progressives, racism, Republicans, republicans-2, role-models, Service to Others, Socialism, spiritual, taxes, taxpayers, tea-party-2, Term limits, The BEST of America, thomas-sowell, umemployment, US Military Veterans, us-constitituon, Women's Issues

A prefect opportunity to President Obama to BE a leader and take an outspoken stand on the behavior of these mobs … like so many other opportunities, has been shoved aside. Maybe when he is all rested up, eh?

Folks, I believe human beings are responsible for their behavior.  However, as America's first black president, fair or unfair, Obama's presidency comes with enormous responsibility in terms of its influence on black youths.  This is why it is so unfortunate that American black youths' ultimate role model is a characterless, race-baiting political hack. While I am not saying president Obama is responsible for the epidemic of black youth flash-mob … Read More

via Diary of a Mad Conservative

I Have a Light

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"life lessons", change, character training, Darkness, Daytime, Democrat, despair, Don Potter, Eternal, God, hope, Hope & Change, Hope * Change, Human nature, Jesus, light, Military appreciation, Night, spiritual

AshraFekry

If you haven’t met me, you have missed nothing. If you haven’t met Jesus Christ, you have missed everything.

Where Has America Gone?

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accountability, America, change, character training, Flower power, history, Human nature, morality

What has happened to my America?

As a small child, I watched my dad start a new business. I was 2 when he bought his first store. All I knew at that time was I no longer had to ride in to the city with mom in the morning and again in the evening to take daddy to work. Mom, a wonderful, intelligent woman with a BS in Biology from Pitt in an era when most women didn’t go to college, let alone in a science field, laughed with my younger brother and I as we threw a sheet over a card table to create a fort. In her house-dress, she crawled into our fort with us to share some tea on rainy afternoons. She gladly became the “pitcher” as we got older and gathered the neighborhood kids to play kickball. She and dad went out two or three nights a week, to choir practice, a neighborhood bridge club, and a couples bowling league. One or both of our grammas (ingeniously called Ging ging B or W by moi) would babysit.

Easter 1959

America, was a land where a man who was willing to work hard could save money to buy a home. Dad never had the chance to finish high school. His dad and brother died before he graduated which left him as sole supporter of his invalid mother and baby sister. So he did work hard, long hours. He added a store every few years until he had acquired 5. I was in high school by that time. He was home when I left for school. He was home for supper and long enough to help me with my math homework. He turned off my radio when he came home from work at about 1 am, and then he went into his office to count the day’s cash and prepare the deposit for the morning. At some point, my dad was given an honorary degree from what is now Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh for his business prowess.

America was a place where family meant fun time together in backyard picnics, family dinners, board games, or interactive TV shows like “Sing along with Mitch!” Amazingly enough, when I was small, motherhood was an honorable position. So honorable, in fact, that most mothers needed no career outside the home to bolster their identity, but rather they derived enormous satisfaction pouring out their life, their beliefs, their priorities in the nurture of their own children. I knew of no daycares … NONE! If a mom had to run to the Dr or a place where kids were not permitted, a neighbor watched the kids without charge. It was the neighborly thing to do. Similarly, if one became ill or suffered a loss, the “neighborhood” took care of them. Casseroles were brought. Children’s clothes were passed around the neighborhood. Neighbors also watched out for one another’s children and property long before there was a “Neighborhood Watch” organization. This was my America.

High School innocence

I remember the early 60’s and the bomb shelter fear … the horrible scare with Soviet missiles in Cuba. Dad was not afraid. I vaguely remember the partial stocking of the basement pantry with canned goods and bottled water, just in case, but nothing changed at home. I remember the riots in LA and Chicago, the Black Panthers, the Flower Children, Haight Ashbury and those early images of Vietnam. These events seemed so foreign to my experience. Strange things came before my eyes, but I had no frame of reference, no way to file this new information. “Happy Days”, “Leave it to Beaver”, the “Nelsons”, “The Patty Duke Show” and “Father Knows Best” evolved into “M*A*S*H”, “WKRP in Cincinnati”, “All in the Family” and “Sanford and Son.” A sadness swept the nation (from my perspective), a sadness that was palpable.

My family was Presbyterian, sort of. I was actually baptized Methodist, confirmed Presbyterian, mentored by an Anglican priest in college and a Nazarene Bible teacher, befriended by Catholics, Unitarians, Jews, and atheists, and married by a Baptist Army Chaplain. This is America to me.

I was taught the notion of the American “melting pot” with neighbors from just about every imaginable European background. There were the McCutchean’s two generations out of Scotland. The Henrici’s with 5 daughters, the Midocks with a back yard ice-skating rink, the Amslers, the Dills, the Allens, Amicis. It was not a big deal. The Polumbo’s were “rich” because they had a NEW car. The Perez family talked funny, but they were really nice. America was different than other places because we could be different and still be friends.

I was taught to be polite to everyone and to respect people. I was taught to behave. I was taught not to lie or cheat. That when I did, I really only hurt myself.

I was taught to treat others the way I wanted them to treat me. To plant seeds of respect to reap respect. To plant seeds of kindness and it would come back to me in my time of need.

I was taught to respected every person equally – There really was such a thing a “color-blindness,” maybe not everywhere, but where I grew up, it existed. A person’s sexuality was a completely private thing and simply not an issue. I know how foreign this sounds, but … it was real once.

Where has THIS America gone?

I believe there are more people who care and want to help one another than there are those who only want to take.

I believe there are more people who believe in God than those who choose not to, but I also believe NEITHER side needs to shove their beliefs on the other.

I believe there are more people who understand responsibility and accountability than those who don’t.

I believe there are more people who live by a moral code than those who don’t know right from wrong, but those who don’t need instruction.

Well … if anyone actually reads all this, I’ll be amazed, but the writing of it has been therapeutic, a birthday gift to myself!

Where has America gone?

Related articles:
America – The Welfare Entitlement State
The Decline of Morality in America
Stop Teaching Kids to Bully! Vive Nos Differences!
Manning the Barricades for Virtue and America
Have We Lost the Power to Rise Above?
Have Liberals and Atheists been given over to a Reprobate Mind by God?
Evolution is Not a “Given” But an “Achieved!”