Category Archives: Current Events

Good Thing My Pastor is Reading His Bible

Current Events, Faith

It’s 3:35 pm, and after a day of setbacks and frustrations, I finally opened my Bible to write today’s passage. James 1:5 is all about asking God for wisdom. Wisdom, I think, was telling me to ask God for His help at 6am instead of 2:30 p.m. today.
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Have you noticed how hard the devil works to keep God’s people from becoming students of the Word?
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I have. I think it’s by design. I think the devil knows that a Christian who isn’t in the Word is weak. I think satan is smarter than I give him credit for most of the time.
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I can only speak for my own “quiet time,” but I have a feeling I’m not alone when I say that every day, I fight with the enemy of my soul for time alone with the One who made me. I fight my flesh to spend time in the Bible. I go to war just to prioritize prayer over parenting.
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There’s always something that disguises itself as being more important.
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Laundry calls. Kids argue. Phone rings. To-do list presses harder.
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“I don’t ‘need’ to read the Bible today,” I lie to myself.
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And so, after a compulsory prayer, I turn my attention to more important, more urgent matters. School. Social media. Housework. Bills. Oil change. Grocery store. Meal prep. Bedtime. Start again tomorrow.
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After days of this, (sometimes months… if I’m really honest), I notice my ability to discern good from evil has been compromised. Little by little, my spiritual eyes grow dim. >>Maybe God doesn’t really care about this and that. Less controversy, please. More peace.<< Yes. Peace is what I want most. The demands of a culture that stands in stark opposition to what God says is right makes even the most seasoned warrior prone to discouragement, I tell myself—as I glance in the direction of my Bible.
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“Good thing my pastor is reading his Bible so he can tell me what I need to know on Sunday,” said a generation of Christians in crisis.

Culture Creep and the Sidelining of Parents

Current Events, Parenting, , ,
Something sad and fascinating is happening to parents in this postmodern era. They’re being lied to. They’re being told that they aren’t necessary and what’s worse they’re buying the lie! After all, they say the “village” can do it better. Well, I’ve seen the village. I don’t want it raising my kids.
I call it “culture creep.” I live in a rural (well, it used to be rural) part of Washington State. Slowly but surely, urban sprawl has reached my town. I like the convenience that comes with it; for example, we just got Red Robin and Walmart last year… but I don’t like the traffic. I loathe the congested streets and long lines at the grocery store. I miss the “small town” feel that it used to have at Christmas and the 4th of July.
culture-creep-heidistjohn
Culture is the same way. Except that from what I can tell, we’re not benefitting one bit. There are no perks. The culture has it’s own agenda. Look carefully. It’s creeping up into places where parents should not want it to go.
 
Slowly but surely, culture is shutting parents out of what should be the parent’s primary place: decision makers in the lives of their children. Parents have the right and responsibility to know what is happening with their children.
 
Yesterday, I learned that Anne Arundel County Public Schools in Maryland, in a effort to make their schools “safe spaces” for kids who identify as transgender, produced a training video, starring the district’s chief communications officer, Bob Mosier. The video surfaced a few days ago on The American Conservative, but was uploaded on YouTube in mid-July.

 In it, Mr. Mosier makes a few key suggestions to teachers and chaperones who take students on overnight trips—chief among them is the advice that if a transgender student wants to sleep with students of the opposite sex, just let them.
 
Oh, and pssst! By the way: since the school values the transgender student’s privacy, make sure no one tells the parents.
 
This is what I’m talking about.
Since when did we stop valuing a parent’s right to know what in the world is happening with their children? How can parents make wise decisions for their children if information is being purposely withheld from them? How can we protect our kids if we don’t know what they’re being taught or exposed to?
 
Parents today are being told that kids can make their own decisions (starting in elementary school) on everything from birth control to which gender they want to be. What used to be regarded as a parents responsibility is often seen as an infringement on the child.
 
Here in my state, simple tasks like looking at my 13 yr olds’ medical records require effort, persistence and even permission from my 13 year old. If we want to stay in the race and finish it well, we must refuse to be sidelined. Moms who go the distance possess a willingness to endure rather than become a passive onlooker in the lives of their children.
 
I understand that there are abuse situations that require different measures, but shutting healthy parents out of the lives of their kids is not the solution. Keeping parents from knowing what is happening with their children at school should not be commonplace! It should be a crime.
 
When the world says “give up” or “it’s not your business,” I challenge you to stand up for the sake of your child. Go ahead and risk being annoying. Be the mom who knows the names of your child’s friends. Be the mom who asks the hard questions and loves unconditionally.  Be the mom who refuses to be sidelined and instead guides her child in the way of Truth through every stage of growing up, including adolescence.
Our kids need their parents. They don’t need the government or the school system to teach them about the big things in life, they need their parents.
And parents? Today’s parents need the wisdom of Solomon. They need the wisdom that comes straight from God Himself.

A Strong Warning About False Teachers

Current Events, Faith, ,

A couple weeks ago, my heart broke as a woman who claims the name of the Lord Jesus invited her followers on social media not to “overburden” their conscience by hesitating to vote for a pro-abortion candidate.

In a Facebook post, this woman said,

“…I’d like to suggest that voting for a pro-choice candidate in this election, or any election, need not overburden your conscience.”

Through her blog, she went on to give a defense of her opinion that was utterly devoid of any evidence of Biblical truth, stating that abortion is a “debatable” topic and that government should make decisions on behalf of women and families.

“Given the complex nature of these and other issues, the degree to which the government should make decisions on behalf of women and families regarding pregnancy is, and should be, debatable.”

Debatable? Not according to God. Not when it comes to the murder of unborn babies. We can talk all day about what the role of government should be in the lives of the we, the governed, but abortion is another animal. Men and women, if you love God and know that you are going to stand before Him someday, your conscience should be terribly burdened by what is happening to our unborn in the name of “choice.” Anyone who suggests that God doesn’t care about it is not listening to the Lord—or cannot listen because they do not know Him.

God’s Word warns us against false teachers. If there was ever a time to be on the lookout for them, the time is now. We are living in a generation of biblically illiterate, immature Christians—people who, while claiming the name of Jesus, and wanting His mercy, forgiveness and salvation, do not wish to carry His cross.

false-teachers

This was evidenced by the thousands of people who cheered her post and encouraged her in her deception. These people are easy targets for wolves among the sheep, and they are blogging, pastoring and counseling God’s children away from, not into, what God says is truth.

Our hearts should break over what breaks God’s heart–and abortion is at the top of the list of things God says he hates. Here’s the Truth, according the the Bible, which is the believer’s final authority:

Proverbs 6:16-19  (NIV)
There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him:
haughty eyes, a lying tongue,hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes,feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.

Isaiah 49:1 Before I was born the Lord called me;from my mother’s womb he has spoken my name. Every baby whose life has been snuffed out at the hands of another human being belonged to God.

Are we so foolish as to believe He will not exact wrath and pour out His righteous anger over us for NOT “overburdening” our conscience? God forms us in our mother’s womb and has spoken our names before we took a single breath. Oh, how we have sinned against the Lord in this nation by calling evil “choice” and excusing sin for the sake of convenience.

False teachers promise peace when God says there will be judgment—and teachers who suggest otherwise are wolves in sheep’s clothing. False teachers tell you that you can live in sin and that God will not discipline you. These are all false teachings.

Get in your Bible, Christian! Know the Word of God. Don’t be fooled by false teachers.

 In the end, we will stand before the Lord and give an account for the way we lived our lives. I, for one, am willing to carry the burden of the unborn on my conscience until the Lord comes and makes it right. As believers in Christ and in His gospel, we have no choice in this matter.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer said it best before he was executed at the hands of the Nazi regime:

“Silence in the face of evil is itself evil: God will not hold us guiltless. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act.”

Click here for a companion podcast!

In Defense of the Children: Are We Protecting Our Most Vulnerable?

Current Events, ,

The world is on fire.  Our children are being sacrificed on the altar of tolerance.

According to WHO, every year in the world there are an estimated 40-50 million abortions. This corresponds to approximately 125,000 abortions per day. In the USA, where nearly half of pregnancies are unintended and four in 10 of these are terminated by abortion, there are over 3,000 abortions per day.  The rights of the baby, who has no voice are sacrificed for the rights of the mom.  Who decided that the mom’s voice was more valuable than the baby’s?

One out of 4 girls and 1 out of 6 boys will be sexually abused before they reach the age of 18 (a.).  Many more go unreported.

Recently the government decided to wage yet another war on our children.  They have invited every sexually perverted person out there to meet our children in the public restroom and have communicated to our children that they have no recourse.  What message is being sent to our kids?  That they don’t matter?  That they have nothing to say about the world around them?  That they are powerless?  That they are worthless?

Our school systems are failing.  Our kids are missing out on the joy of just being kids.  Play is a human right for children (b.)  Being able to ride their bikes, run, pretend, explore the real world around them, and not be hurried gives them a chance to learn in ways that work for them, which, in turn, helps them grow into healthy adults.

We are not the first culture to wage a war on children. For thousands of years, the children are the ones who seem to pay the price for each civilization’s foolishness.  They were the ones being sacrificed (literally) to the “gods” on the altar in cultures past.  They seem to be the first to be attacked and as developed as our country is, we are still not protecting our children the way we should.  We are sacrificing them on the altar of tolerance.

defense-children

Children are vulnerable.  They are depending on us to protect them and as a population, we are failing them miserably.

Here’s the thing:  children are NOT adults.  That means they are not ready for many “adult” situations.  Our culture is pushing them out in front of a moving bus all in the name of “progress.”

God has a very different view of children than the world does.  He clearly loves children.  He calls them a blessing.  He says they are of great value.

“People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” And he took the children in his arms, placed his hands on them and blessed them.”

  — Mark 10:13-16

“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”

  — James 1:27

We are in a battle of epic proportions. If our children are led astray by sin and wrong thinking,  future generation will suffer greatly for it.

This battle we are facing is a spiritual one.  It can’t be fought with earthly weapons. (2 Corin. 10:4) The enemy of our souls comes to kill, steal and destroy our children and us, but Jesus said that we can have life and have it more abundantly.  Jesus conquered sin and death through his death and resurrection and the victory is ours.

When the final curtain is drawn, will we have been found faithful to have protected the most vulnerable?  Will we have done everything in our power to be their advocates, to defend the defenseless?

I encourage you to take some time to think and pray about what that looks like for you.

As a mom, I never, ever want to be found sacrificing what I know is best for my children in order to please the culture.  We need to be warriors in defense of the children…our children and the others that God places in our lives.  We have an opportunity to invest into the next generation.  Let’s do it and do it well because they are worth it!

a. a “Child Abuse and Neglect Statistics.” U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. 2011. Accessed: December 28, 2011.

b. http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/119/1/182

Dear Church: Please Stop Trying to Be Relevant.

Current Events, Faith, Marriage, ,

I received a message from a woman last week who was desperate to reach her wayward son. “I don’t want to offend him,” she lamented. “I don’t want him to think I’m irrelevant because I believe the Bible.”  She went on to say she was even more confused about how to reach her son because her pastor was unwilling to address cultural issues. You know,  we need to be careful not to “push anyone away.” Her pastor’s passive stance on issues that her family is facing confused her. Her struggle deepened. After all, what good mother would push her son away with Bible verses-n-stuff? Sounds a little “yesterday,” and “churchy” in today’s progressive culture, don’t you think? But is it?

I might be all alone here, but I think our struggle for cultural relevance is robbing the Church of the one thing that actually makes us relevant.  We sure can draw a crowd with our hipster services and feel-good gospel—but tell me, how’s that working for us?

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A few days ago, I read the story of a young Christian rocker named Trey Pearson. He has joined a chorus of other Christians in embracing his “true self,” by “coming out” as gay—leaving a devastated wife and broken family in his wake. In the name of being his “authentic” self, he has embraced what God says leads to death. With acceptance from people he thinks speak for Jesus, Trey has chosen to deny God and exalt himself. Trey said this was a “defining moment” for him – a moment when he finally found himself. Like so many before him, Trey has traded God’s truth for his own.

What’s a Christian to do? It’s a little bit of a crowd-shrinker I know, but here it is:  the answer is not to run toward “our truth.” The answer is to run away from it! The answer is to run toward the Way, the Truth and the Life— toward the One who died to set us free by His truth.

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My heart truly breaks for this young man, and for all those who will follow him. It’s age old spiritual warfare—SW101, if you will: Take out the pastor and declare open season on the sheep. Satan knows if he can take out a man or woman with a platform, he’s got a clear shot at those who follow that platform. So where were the true Christians when this man with a platform was engaged in one-on-one spiritual warfare with the enemy of his soul?

They were nowhere to be found. I noticed Trey was flanked by two of his “pastors” in an image on his blog. He talked about how these “pastors” were instrumental in helping him. A true follower of Jesus would have loved Trey enough to be honest with him. Honestly? The Christian life is about denial of self (Colossians 3:5) rather than the embracing of it. If we embrace our “true selves” then look out—because literally, all hell will break lose. In our natural self, we’re lost. But nevermind that. In the name of love, at least some of the Christians around Trey have sacrificed truth on the altar of compassion.

“Love” is taking on new forms these days. Except that it’s not loving to lie.

Dear Church, please stop trying to be relevant.

I was a pastor’s wife for nearly 20 years. As such, I can promise you right now that some church leaders are scratching their heads at this article, wondering how we got here.  So let’s be honest: we blew it when we ostracized a group of people because they sin differently that we do. When I was a young Bible college student, I knew heterosexual couples who were totally sinning on the weekends—but the guy who said he struggled with same-sex attraction got the boot. What a mess we made. Unfortunately, instead of recognizing our sin and  admitting that we are all broken in different ways, we’ve fallen off the other side of the narrow path. Now, we are sacrificing truth on the altar of mercy.

In the name of being culturally relevant and often, in direct rebellion against God, many churches have turned a blind eye to the sin of abortion, covered up the sin of its pastors and priests, hailed gay marriage as “progress,” and quietly condoned assisted suicide as “brave.” Even worse, we’re silent. When did we start believing that speaking the truth in love equals silence or timidity?

“For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.” 2 Timothy 1:7

When did we forget the grace of Jesus on our own broken lives? When did we forget to talk about it? When did we stop believing it?

We may think we’re drawing people to Christ by quietly accepting this massive shift in the culture, but the evidence is clear: our silence is costing this generation dearly. Among the casualties of a “relevant” church is the inconvenient truth that, aside from rare chromosomal anomalies, our DNA is set at birth. We’re either male or female.

Bottom line? I don’t think the culture wants our wishy-washy “relevance.” They don’t need our fancy programs or big buildings. The youth of today are grappling with issues we could not have even imagined twenty years ago. They’re being bombarded by bold lies that are causing many of them to do irreparable harm to their bodies and minds. What is our answer? What do we say, Church? We say the truth—in love—and we leave the results up to God. That’s freeing, really; to know we’re not responsible for the response, we’re just responsible to bear witness to the healing grace of Jesus.  We are simply called to tell people that truth exists—and that God defines it.

This is the challenge of the Church today: to tell the truth, as it’s put forward in the Bible. To stand for righteousness. To proclaim the gospel to a generation who thought Barak Obama would bring them “hope and change.”

 Under the watch of the “relevant” church, devastating lies have taken root in the culture. The depth of deception we are facing runs deep and wide, but God’s Word tells us that the gate that opens to life is narrow. The road that leads to life is difficult. It requires that we come before the Lord daily and ask Him to help us live in His truth, not ours.

 “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.” Matthew 7:13-14

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The road is narrow—but it leads to life, and not just any old, run-of-the-mill life … abundant life.

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”
John 10:10

The thief is lying to us, as he has been doing since the Garden of Eden. Jesus says, “Follow Me, and I will give you LIFE!” Life that’s worth living and worth sharing. Life that’s bold and courageous. (Joshua 1:7) Life that’s rich and abundant. So no. I’m not against using the technology and music of this age to reach people with the gospel. I love the concert-worthy music many of today’s churches provide and, dare I say, I enjoy a delicous latte on my way to Sunday School. These things are good; but I have to ask: In our effort to be seen as “relevant,” have we lost the thing that makes us truly relevant? Because the thing that makes us relevant doesn’t need the trappings of modern “Christianity.”

What good is an entertaining church service that fails to entertain the questions that this generation is asking? What good is it if we can’t articulate compassion and truth in a way that clearly addresses the message of the cross? The cross is hope.

…and hope does not disappoint. Hope has a name. It’s Jesus.

The truth of the gospel has not changed. The saving power of a relationship with Jesus is all the relevance we need.

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“Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another.”Ephesians 4:25

Will the Parents Who Have Never Lost Sight of Their Child Please Stand Up?

Current Events, Parenting

Will the parents who have never lost sight of their child please stand up?

In yet another example of our culture gone bezerk, over 236,000 people have signed a petition calling for “Justice for Harambe,” the gorilla that was shot and killed after a four-year old boy fell into his enclosure at the Cincinnati Zoo.  

Go home, “Change.org.” You’re drunk.

Can any mother reading this REALLY tell me she has never lost sight of her child? Even for moment?

As a mother of seven I can assure you, children can be with you one minute and vanish the next. I think I’m a pretty good mom. BUT. I have “lost” my kids in Legoland, Disneyland, WalMart, church and even in my own home. (This happened in 1998. Turned out the child was up on the roof with her two year old sister in tow.) I know. You’re mad. Don’t worry. Happily, I know where my kids are at the moment of this blog post. You might be surprised to learn that three of my children have survived to adulthood. So far, the therapy bills aren’t too bad. Time will tell.

My point? I don’t think I’m the only parent who has felt the heart-stopping, sheer terror that comes from losing track of a child. Be careful when you judge the mothering of this woman. This was an accident. A horrible accident but an accident nonetheless. The zoo did the right thing. What would we all be saying right now if they had hesitated and the child was killed? What would the headlines be then?

The loss of the gorilla’s life is tragic—but in this upside-down world, we seem to be placing a higher value on the life of an animal than we do on our own children. We want to judge the zoo and the mother for taking the life of the gorilla—nevermind that it was necessary to save the life of the child.

But we don’t care about the child, do we? Not really.

125,000 human beings are murdered EVERY DAY through abortion, with a negligible number of people speaking on their behalf, but a gorilla is killed to protect the life of a child, and 236,000 people rush to his defense. All I can do is sit here and shake my head.

21% of all US pregnancies end in abortion. One gorilla is killed to protect a child and we want to crucify the parents instead of being grateful that the boy is not dead or terribly injured.

Sad situation indeed, but I feel for the parents who are being judged so harshly. 

We’ve got a huuuuuge priority problem in this nation. It’s time we talked about THAT.

Heidi St John Homeschooling Guide to Daylight

Target’s “Guest” Policy Is About More Than Bathrooms

Current Events, ,

The times, they are a-changing. Every day, it seems a new surprise announcement surfaces for the American public to try and absorb, everything from political shenanigans to gender-bending news—and mandates and edicts ‘n stuff. Seems we can’t catch a break from the new social order that is rapidly being constructed around us—you know… the one our children and grandchildren are going to grow up in.

And it’s wrong, too. It’s just plain wrong. Can I say that? It’s been a few weeks and I’m still shaking my head at the fact that we now have to defend the once commonly held notion that women’s restrooms are for, well—women.

It’s a conversation that we never imagined we would be having. First it was stores, and now, predictably, it’s coming to schools.

In the interest of transparency, I’ll confess: I never really liked Target calling their customers “guests.” The term implies that the store is not really a store. A+ marketing job, Target. They know people. When you’re a guest, you feel at home, right? The term has a warm fuzzy feel about it. It invites you to let down your defenses. As a “guest” in Target, you feel safe and valued while you spend your hard-earned dollars on everything from cucumbers to calculators.

It’s part of (or it used to be) Target’s appeal, isn’t it? We’re not just customers to Target, we’re their “guests.”

Listen. Target loves your money you. They have your comfort and safety in mind. They do! In fact, they want all their “guests” to be comfortable in their own skin. That’s why they’re allowing any grown man who “feels” like a woman to follow your 10 yr old right into their bathrooms. That guy has feelings! Don’t you care? Come one! Have a heart!

A Target supporter told me via Facebook the other day that I need to stop worrying about it. She suggested I “learn to be the parent” and simply accompany my girls into the restrooms, past the guys, you know … and just deal with it. A good mom would never let her kids go to the bathrooms alone anyway, right? Right! But that’s not the point, and most consumers know it. Target stock is continuing to plummet in the wake of their decision.

So here’s the question: Is this really Target’s best attempt at making their “guests” feel safe and loved and valued and protected and understood and comfortable?

Absolutely not. If it was about making transgendered customers feel safe, they would have spent the money to put in more family restrooms.

Make no mistake: Target’s eyeing a much bigger target.

Is this really about bathrooms? Heidi St. John, mother of seven, says NO.

Target doesn’t care that this puts women and children at risk in the most vulnerable of scenarios. This is not about accommodating the transgendered community. It’s about forcing anyone who senses there is something inherently wrong with men pretending to be women to “get over it…” and if they have to sacrifice yours or your daughter’s or your wife’s safety in order to make their point, they’ll do it.

This is so NOT about bathrooms. It’s about social engineering. It’s about a large corporation saying they know better than the people who are so fortunate as to be seen as guests in their stores.

And, it’s another nail in the coffin of what God says family was created to look like: marriage between a man and a woman; a father and a mother raising children. We are, by design, male and female. The LGBT movement you are seeing in the culture today has one aim: to further destroy “binary” of male and female, and ultimately, change the culture forever. As the family goes, so goes the culture.

Bottom line? I’m not buying it. And I don’t just mean what Target is selling, I mean what they’re selling. I’m not buying their perverted new social order. I’m not buying their arrogant attitude—but Target is a private company. If they want to put their “guests” in danger to make a political statement, that is their right.

The public schools are another matter entirely. Most of you know we have homeschool our kids—and after the President’s king’s edict last week, you could not pay me to put our kids back into a government school. Target is one thing. I’ll vote on that one with my wallet. But our kids—our kids! Mr. President. You would pull funding from American schools to make a political point? Really?

Yes. He would. Why? Because this is not about bathrooms. It’s bigger than that. It’s about ushering in a new era where those who believe in the traditional male/female “binary” are shunned and marginalized.

There comes a time when ordinary people need to stand up against dangerous ideologies. I hope you won’t let fear keep you from protecting your children, wives and daughters. It’s okay to be angry. It’s okay to say NOT ON MY WATCH. It’s okay to tell President Obama that you don’t want to participate in his social agenda. We’ve got kids to protect. I expect to see a huge surge in the number of parents choosing to homeschool because of actions like this. If you’re thinking of homeschooling, take it from a mom of seven who has been doing it nearly twenty years. You can do it. If you’re on the fence about homeschooling, now is a good time to take the plunge.

Here are five things I wish I’d known before I started homeschooling.

Oh, and Target, I don’t want to be your guest again—so you can take your comfy-cozy, calibrated collaboration with the left and keep it.

I choose my kids. We’re losing a lot more than our right to privacy. We’re losing our voice. We’re losing our freedom.

Parents need to be a voice for their children! Just say NO to genderless locker rooms and public bathrooms! #notonourwatch

#notonourwatch

Join the boycott against Target HERE

Target CEO digs in; refuses to hear pleas from worried consumers