GOTTA LOVE THIS GUY!

They give Sheriff Joe a hard time, but he sticks with his principles. I'm proud that he's our sheriff. He still provides pink underwear for the inmates. A few years ago they were selling the pink shorts signed by Sheriff Joe at Christmas time at the mall. I gave a pair to hubby. No, he doesn't wear them. I think he is quite proud to own them, however.

This has nothing to do with Sheriff Joe, but thought I'd voice my disappointment with the people who attend the Silver Sneakers exercise group at 24 Hour Fitness. The last two times there were only two of us there besides the teacher. And - it was a different one and me each time. Maybe they're still celebrating Thanksgiving. Or maybe they have started celebrating Christmas early.

HOW SAD

Star Spangled Banner

Thank God for men like this former Marine. Be sure to stop my music before viewing the video.

IS THE NOBEL PRIZE A "NOBLE" PRIZE?

The majority of those polled believe this was political. What do you think?

I found the following article on the Fox Nation website.

What are the Nobel Prize Committee Chairman's Socialist Ties?

With the choice of President Obama for the Nobel Peace Prize inspiring such widespread befuddlement, it seems worthwhile to ask, just who are these people who made this choice, and what might their agenda be?
Accompanying news stories on the award were photos of a smiling Thorbjorn Jagland, chairman of the Nobel Peace Prize Committee, admiringly hold a photo of the U.S. president.

This is the man who spoke gushingly about the hope Obama has inspired. Who is Thorbjorn Jagland?

Some stories have reported that he is the former prime minister of Norway, and that he was the leader of the Norwegian Labor Party for 10 years. But he recently completed an even more interesting 10-year tenure.

From 1999 through 2008, Jagland was vice president of Socialist International. What’s that? It’s exactly what the name suggests – an international organization of socialist groups who advocate for far left policies. It also boasts of “consultative status” with the United Nations.

WE SEE WHAT WE WANT TO SEE

President Obama said he wasn't paying too much attention to these people. Most of the TV news didn't pay any attention to them at all. Oh, I think they knew what was going on. They just didn't report it because they didn't want too many people to find out about it.

The Tea Party Express will be rolling again. Will congress see it? Will the President see it? If they do it will be on Fox News. They won't likely see it on any of the "Alphabet channels". Possibly CNN will cover it (slightly).

Did you know there was an official blog for the Tea Party Express? Here's the link. http://teapartyexpress.wordpress.com/ You can find the schedule there.

IN GOD WE TRUST

I'll bet this was a surprise to NBC...

NBC POLL

Do you believe that the word God should stay in American culture?

NBC had a poll on this question. They had the highest Number of responses that they have ever had for one of their polls. Here are the results:

86% to keep the words, IN God We Trust and God in the Pledge of Allegiance

14% against.

That is a pretty 'commanding' public response.

It is said that 86% of Americans believe the word God should stay..

Therefore, I have a very hard time understanding why there is such a controversy about having 'In God We Trust' on our money and having God in the Pledge of Allegiance. Why is the world catering to this 14%?

This information was posted on Jeanne's blog and I wanted to help get the message out.

It Doesn't Add Up

Let's Check the Math. . . .

A clunker vehicle at 15 mpg and 12,000 miles per year uses 800 gallons a year of gasoline. A more fuel efficient vehicle at 25 mpg and 12,000 miles per year uses 480 gallons a year. So, the average clunker transaction will reduce US gasoline consumption by 320 gallons per year. They claim 700,000 vehicles – so that's 224 million gallons / year. That equates to a bit over 5 million barrels of oil. 5 million barrels of oil is about ¼ of one day's US consumption. And, 5 million barrels of oil costs about $350 million dollars at $75/bbl. So, we all contributed to spending $3 billion to save $350 million. How good a deal was that ??? They'll probably do a great job with health care though!! Thanks for the e-mail Mike.

WE NEED THE FACTS

A WISE DOCTOR

A worried woman went to her gynecologist and said, 'Doctor, I have a serious problem and desperately need your help! My baby is not even one year old and I'm pregnant again. I don't want kids so close together.

So the doctor said, 'Okay, and what do you want me to do?'

She said, 'I want you to end my pregnancy, and I'm counting on your help with this.'

The doctor thought for a little and after some silence he said to the lady, 'I think I have a better solution for your problem. It's less dangerous for you, too.'

She smiled, thinking the doctor was going to accept her request.

Then he continued, 'You see, in order for you not to have to take care of two babies at the same time, let's kill the one in your arms. This way, you could rest some before the other one is born. If we're going to kill one of them, it doesn't matter which one it is. There would be no risk for your body if you chose the one in your arms.'

The lady was horrified and said, 'No, doctor! How terrible! It's a crime to kill a child!' 'I agree,' the doctor replied. 'But you seemed to be okay with it, so I thought maybe that was the best solution.'

The doctor smiled, realizing that he had made his point. He had convinced the mom there is no difference in killing a child that's already been born and one that's still in the womb. The crime is the same!

"Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee." Jeremiah 1:5

What a wise doctor.

I'm Tired

I know the following quote is long but I think it is well worth the time it takes to read it.

"I am Tired" by Robert A. Hall
Robert Hall is a Marine Vietnam veteran who served five terms in the Massachusetts State Senate.

This man makes so much sense that it is hard to believe he has served as a politician from Massachusetts.

"I'm Tired" by Robert A. Hall

I'll be 63 soon. Except for one semester in college when jobs were scarce, and a six-month period when I was between jobs, but job-hunting every day, I've worked, hard, since I was 18 Despite some health challenges, I still put in 50-hour weeks, and haven't called in sick in seven or eight years. I make a good salary, but I didn't inherit my job or my income, and I worked to get where I am. Given the economy, there's no retirement in sight, and I'm tired. Very tired.

I'm tired of being told that I have to "spread the wealth around" to people who don't have my work ethic. I'm tired of being told the government will take the money I earned, by force if necessary, and give it to people too lazy or stupid to earn it. I'm tired of being told that I have to pay more taxes to "keep people in their homes." Sure, if they lost their jobs or got sick, I'm willing to help But if they bought Mansions at three times the price of our paid-off, $250,000 condo, on one-third of my salary, then let the left-wing Congress-critters who passed Fannie and Freddie and the Community Reinvestment Act that created the bubble help them with their own money.

I'm tired of being told how bad America is by left-wing millionaires like Michael Moore, George Soros, and Hollywood entertainers who live in luxury because of the opportunities America offers. In thirty years, if they get their way, the United States will have the economy of Zimbabwe, the freedom of the press of China, the crime and violence of Mexico, the tolerance for Christian people of Iran, and the freedom of speech of Venezuela. Won't multiculturalism be beautiful?

I'm tired of being told that Islam is a "Religion of Peace," when every day I can read dozens of stories of Muslim men killing their sisters, wives and daughters for their family "honor"; of Muslims rioting over some slight offense; of Muslims murdering Christian and Jews because they aren't "believers" ; of Muslims burning schools for girls; of Muslims stoning teenage rape victims to death for "adultery"; of Muslims mutilating the genitals of little girls; all in the name of Allah, because the Qur'an and Shari'a law tells them to. I believe "a man should be judged by the content of his character, not by the color of his skin." I'm tired of being told that "race doesn't matter" in the post-racial world of Obama, when it's all that matters in affirmative action jobs, lower college admission and graduation standards for minorities (harming them the most), government contract set-asides, tolerance for the ghetto culture of violence and fatherless children that hurts minorities more than anyone, and in the appointment of US Senators from Illinois.

I think it's very cool that we have a black president and that a black child is doing her homework at the desk where Lincoln wrote the emancipation proclamation. I just wish the black president was Condi Rice, or someone who believes more in freedom and the individual and less arrogantly of an all-knowing government.

I'm tired of a news media that thinks Bush's fundraising and inaugural expenses were obscene, but that think Obama's, at triple the cost, were wonderful. That thinks Bush exercising daily was a waste of presidential time, but Obama exercising is a great example for the public to control weight and stress, that picked over every line of Bush's military records, but never demanded that Kerry release his, that slammed Palin, with two years as governor, for being too inexperienced for VP, but touted Obama with three years as senator as potentially the best president ever. I Wonder why people are dropping their subscriptions or switching to Fox News ? Get a clue.

I'm tired of being told that out of "tolerance for other cultures" we must let Saudi Arabia use our oil money to fund mosques and madrassa Islamic schools to preach hate in America, while no American group is allowed to fund a church, synagogue, or religious school in Saudi Arabia to teach love and tolerance.

I'm tired of being told I must lower my living standard to fight global warming, which no one is allowed to debate. My wife and I live in a two-bedroom apartment and carpool together five miles to our jobs. We also own a three -bedroom condo where our daughter and granddaughter live. Our carbon footprint is about 5% of Al Gore's, and if you're greener than Gore, you're green enough for me.

I'm tired of being told that drug addicts have a disease, and I must help support and treat them, and pay for the damage they do. Did a giant germ rush out of a dark alley, grab them, and stuff white powder up their noses while they tried to fight it off? I don't think Gay people choose to be Gay, but I damn sure think druggies chose to take drugs.

And I'm tired of harassment from cool people treating me like a freak when I tell them I never tried marijuana. I'm tired of illegal aliens being called "undocumented workers," especially the ones who aren't working, but are living on welfare or crime. What's next? Calling drug dealers, Undocumented Pharmacists"? And, no, I'm not against Hispanics. Most of them are Catholic, and it's been a few hundred years since Catholics wanted to kill me for my religion. I'm willing to fast track for citizenship any Hispanic person, who can speak English, doesn't have a criminal record and who is self-supporting without family on welfare, or who serves honorably for three years in our military... Those are the citizens we need.

I'm tired of latte liberals and journalists, who would never wear the uniform of the Republic themselves, or let their entitlement-handicapped kids near a recruiting station, trashing our military. They and their kids can sit at home, never having to make split-second decisions under life and death circumstances, and bad mouth better people than themselves. Do bad things happen in war? You bet. Do our troops sometimes misbehave? Sure. Does this compare with the atrocities that were the policy of our enemies for the last fifty years-and still are?

Not even close. So here's the deal. I'll let myself be subjected to all the humiliation and abuse that was heaped on terrorists at Abu Ghraib or Gitmo, and the critics can let themselves be subject to captivity by the Muslims who tortured and beheaded Daniel Pearl in Pakistan, or the Muslims who tortured and murdered Marine Lt. Col. William Higgins in Lebanon, or the Muslims who ran the blood-spattered Al Qaeda torture rooms our troops found in Iraq, or the Muslims who cut off the heads of schoolgirls in Indonesia, because the girls were Christian. Then we'll compare notes. British and American soldiers are the only troops in history that civilians came to for help and handouts, instead of hiding from in fear.

I'm tired of people telling me that their party has a corner on virtue and the other party has a corner on corruption. Read the papers-bums are bipartisan. And I'm tired of people telling me we need bipartisanship. I live in Illinois, where the "Illinois Combine" of Democrats has worked to loot the public for years. Not to mention the tax cheats in Obama's cabinet as well.

I'm tired of hearing wealthy athletes, entertainers, and politicians of both parties talking about innocent mistakes, stupid mistakes or youthful mistakes, when we all know they think their only mistake was getting caught.

I'm tired of people with a sense of entitlement, rich or poor. Speaking of poor, I'm tired of hearing people with air-conditioned homes, color TVs and two cars called poor. The majority of Americans didn't have that in 1970, but we didn't know we were "poor." The poverty pimps have to keep changing the definition of poor to keep the dollars flowing I'm real tired of people who don't take responsibility for their lives and actions. I'm tired of hearing them blame the government, or discrimination, or big-whatever for their problems.

Yes, I'm damn tired. But I'm also glad to be 63. Because, mostly, I'm not going to have to see the world these people are making. I'm just sorry for my grandchildren.

I don't know Robert Hall, but I'm grateful for his sharing his heart about this matter.

SCARY STUFF

GOD IN AMERICA

Tammy at Sunshine Cottage shared this video with us for Spiritual Sundays. I wish everybody in America would watch it. I'm putting it here hoping that at least a few will see it. I think it is so important especially as the birthday of our country is almost here.

AN INTERESTING PERSPECTIVE

Yes I know. We lost. I'm not talking about the football game. I'm talking about the election. I received an interesting e-mail yesterday that I wanted to share with you to show some contrast in administrations.

January 2009:

• Outgoing President George W. Bush quietly boards his helicopter and leaves for Texas, commenting only: "Today is not about me. Today is a historical day for our nation and people."
  

January 20 eight years ago:

• Outgoing President Bill Clinton scheduled two separate radio addresses to the nation, and organized a public farewell speech/rally in downtown Washington D.C. schedules to directly conflict with incoming President Bush's inauguration ceremony.
  

January 20, 2009:

• President Bush leaves office issuing a single Presidential pardon, only granting a commutation of sentence to two former border agents convicted of shooting a convicted drug smuggler. He does not grant any type of clemency to Scooter Libby or any other former political aide, ally, or business partner.
  

January 20 eight years ago:

• President Clinton issued 140 pardons and several commutations of sentence on his final day in office. Included in these are: billionaire financier, convicted tax evader, and leading Democratic campaign contributor Marc Rich; Whitewater scandal figure Susan McDougal; Congressional Post Office Scandal figure and former Democratic Congressman Dan Rostenkowski; convicted bank fraud, sexual assault and child porn perpetrator and former Democratic Congressman Melvin Reynolds; and convicted drug felon Roger Clinton, the President's half-brother.
  

January 20, 2009:

• The Bush daughters leave gift baskets in the White House bedrooms for the Obama daughters, containing flowers, candy, stuffed animals, DVD's and CD's, and heartfelt notes of encouragement and advice for the young girls on how to prepare for their new lives in the White House.

January 20 eight years ago:

• Clinton and Gore staffers rip computer wires and electrical outlets from the White House walls, stuff piles of notebook papers into the White House toilets, systematically remove the letter "W" from every computer key-pad in the White House and damage several thousand dollars worth of furniture in the White House master bedroom.

Headlines On January 20, 2005:

• "Republicans spending $42 million on inauguration while troops Die in unarmed Humvees"
• "Bush extravagance exceeds any reason during tough economic times"
• "Fat cats get their $42 million inauguration party, Ordinary Americans get the shaft"

Headlines on January 20, 2009:

• "Historic Obama inauguration will cost only $170 million"
• "Obama Spends $170 million on inauguration; America Needs A Big Party"
• "Everyman Obama shows America how to celebrate"
• "Citibank executives contribute $8 million to Obama Inauguration"

Do you weep or get angry? I think maybe both.

GO SARAH!

WHAT ABOUT THE FUTURE?

I was reading a post on Joel Rosenberg's blog. He said some things that I have been thinking but didn't know how to put it into words. He wrote this a few days ago after the financial meltdown was at its worst. Here is what he had to say. I think he said it well.

1. Are there prophetic implications of this financial crisis? It is hard to be definitive. The U.S. does not show up specifically in any end times Bible prophecies. But this fact alone raises a sobering question: If we are really in what the Bible describes as “the last days” before the return of Jesus Christ, then how is it possible that the United States of America — the wealthiest and most powerful nation on the face of the planet in the history of mankind — does not play a significant, notable role in Biblical end times events? The honest answer: I don’t know for certain. But here’s what I wrote in Dead Heat (p. 154): “What Bennett had never really considered carefully until now was the possibility that something else might devastate the American people, rendering them ineffective heading into the last of the last days. A financial downturn on Wall Street. The sudden collapse of the dollar. The beginning of another Great Depression. A series of devastating earthquakes. Or hurricanes. Or other natural disasters, like a tsunami. [Or ] the most cataclysmic terrorist attack of all time — five nuclear warheads. And there might be more to come. None of it was clearly prophesied in the Scriptures. Not that he could find. But perhaps he should have foreseen the neutralization of America by more carefully reading between the lines. If so, what else was he missing? What exactly was coming next?”
2. Finally, let us consider the possibility that the Lord is allowing this economic meltdown in part to shake our confidence in anything but a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Is it possible that God is trying to shake us loose from trusting in our wealth, from trusting in our political leaders, from trusting in our own ingenuity and our own hard work? Is it possible that He is trying to get us to shift our focus from worldly, materialistic things to how much He loves us, and the truth that the only person we can truly trust in life to never leave us or forsake us is Jesus Christ? Is it possible that He is trying to get us to read the Bible more, and the stock tickers less? To pray more, and to worry less? To store up our treasures in heaven, and not concentrate so much on our treasures on earth? Anyone who is feeling fearful during this turbulent economic times would do well to meditate on the words Jesus told His disciples in Matthew 6:19-33, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also….No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other You cannot serve God and wealth. For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith! Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

Perhaps one of the things God is showing us is that we need to depend on him more. We can't depend on the government. Actually we can't depend on anything or anybody in the final analysis except HIM.

DISAPPOINTING TIMES FOR ME

The final count is not in as I write this, but I am very disappointed with what looks like the inevitable outcome of the election. I think that a large majority of people did not really know what they were voting for. They were just mesmerized by a smooth talking politician.

God doesn't always answer our prayers the way we want him to. He looks ahead at the big picture that we can't see. We know by reading the Bible, that many times he lets his people be defeated and even taken into captivity because of their actions and their attitude toward him and his laws.

One of the things that comes to my mind is that I have to be reminded that our time on earth is temporary and Jesus said that his kingdom is not of this world. I don't know what is ahead for America. I just pray that the liberal left will not be allowed to take more of our religious liberties from us. They have already taken God out of our schools to the detriment to our students and our country. Abortion is allowed and approved by our government. I'm not sure we can expect God to bless us as a nation any longer.

I like what Edward Fudge wrote in an e-mail that just came in a few minutes ago. He writes a daily column that he calls gracEmail. Here is a quote from him:

We live during an interim on God's calendar, a defined but unknown period of time that began with a significant event and that will end when Jesus comes again. This is the period of God's conquests, which began when Jesus was enthroned at God's right hand in heaven and will continue until the last enemy, death, has been destroyed (Psalm 110:1). It is simultaneously the period of heaven's reception of Jesus, which will end with the redemptive restoration of all things spoken by the ancient prophets (Acts 3:20-21). In both respects, we live between the Already and the Not Yet.

Because the exact time of the End is unknown, we fully engage the world in which we live. But because the End can arrive any day, we hold all earthly things lightly rather than tightly. Paul once expressed it like this: "This is what I mean, brothers: the appointed time has grown very short. From now on, let those who have wives live as though they had none, and those who mourn as though they were not mourning, and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy as though they had no goods, and those who deal with the world as though they had no dealings with it. For the present form of this world is passing away" (1 Cor. 7:29-31, ESV).

God calls us out of the world to go back into the world for the sake of the world. We believers are God's salt-and-light brigade, not his society of separated hermits. But we are like firefighters in the station house -- sleeping, working, eating, yet ready every moment to respond immediately to the call. This does not mean that we live inauthentic lives, merely going through the motions with our minds and hearts elsewhere. It does mean that every earthly circumstance, relationship and event is transitory, and that we keep that in mind lest we become so attached to anything that leaving it when the time comes causes unbearable pain. Nothing here is permanent. Nothing now is ultimate. Yet, for God's sake, every occasion is significant and ever person is important. You can click HERE to go to Edward Fudge's website.

I wish every person in America had seen the video below before they voted. It might have made some stop and think instead of blindly following their "new messiah". We need to pray for our country like we've never prayed before.

SO GOOD I HAD TO SHARE IT

Only in America would you find a totally biased press focus on Palin's so-called $150,000 wardrobe but totally ignore Barack Obama's spending more than $600,000,000 trying to get elected.

Only in America could Barack Obama, the leading candidate in the Presidential election, sit in a racist, radical church for more than 20 years and never hear the rantings of his lunatic Pastor, yet still be considered "brilliant" by the liberal press and public.

Only in America can a Presidential candidate (Barack Hussein Obama) SAY he is Christian, yet chose a MUSLIM name for himself as a grown man in college.

Only in America (while we remain in a contracted war with Islamic terrorism and have lost close to 10,000 lives in the war and terrorist attacks over the last 20 years) can a man even carry the name of BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA and still be considered a legitimate candidate for President.

Only in America can a man who began his political career in the home of a known domestic terrorist, (who also bombed the White House and Pentagon and says he wished he would have done more) be considered a good candidate for President because he is "articulate" and "charismatic".

Only in America can one candidate (Palin) who is the Governor of the largest state in the U.S. be called "inexperienced", but the opposing candidate for President (Obama) be called "ready for the job" with one term in the U.S. Senate.

Only in America can a leading candidate for President (Obama) promise to lower taxes for 95% of the population when only 60-70% pay taxes in the first place, yet still go unchallenged with his rhetoric and actually be believed by a portion of the voting public.

Only in America can a candidate who is favored by the Islamic states, Farrakhan, Chavez, Castro, Iran, Korea, Colombia and other terroristic nations be considered a legitimate choice for President.

Only in America can a candidate (Obama) be rated the most liberal Senator in the U.S. , claim to be "moderate" while he is running for President, and yet still go unchallenged by the so-called U.S. media.

Only in America can a radical, bigoted, hateful racist (Louis Farrakhan) who has likened White people to "the Devil" and embraces a religion which says that whites are "descendants of the devil", call Obama "the Messiah" and a "great hope" without people abandoning their support in droves.

Only in America can a Presidential candidate (Barack Obama) claim he is going to reduce the income tax (1 TAX) on people who make less than $250,000 a year, then raise 8-10 OTHER TAXES we all pay, either in direct taxes or taxes that are passed on in the increased cost of goods and services resulting from theses increased taxes, and still be considered trying to help the "middle income" families of America.

Only in America can a man who is not even constitutionally eligible to hold office be so close to winning the Presidency. Barack Obama's father was not an American and his mother was not a legal resident long enough before he was born to qualify him as eligible for the Presidency. Where is the so-called "Press" of this country?

Only in America can a man who is not eligible for selection to the FBI because of his past terrorist associations be close to winning the White House.

Let us pray for our election as they did in India.

Praying for the Upcoming Election

God interveined in India. Let's pray for his intervention in our election

Patrick Joshua is the Director of the National Prayer Network and a father figure to the prayer movement in India .

Because of a special burden for our nation, he visited the United States twice in recent months, including a trip to Houston . Patrick believes the U.S. is at a very critical time in history, the impact of which will be felt around the world. During his visits, Patrick told the story of God's intervention in India in 2004, in response to the fervent, united prayers of His people. At that time, political forces had mobilized with the intention of turning their nation in a direction that would make it almost impossible for Christians to share or practice their faith. Those forces had the momentum and the numbers as the Christian population in India is a minority – by some estimates representing only 6% of the 1.1 billion people in the nation. The situation was desperate.

Many thought it was impossible. So they turned to the God of the impossible and began to pray. In cities and states across their nation, a movement of united, fervent prayer arose, but with a unique focus. They weren't praying for particular candidates or political parties. Instead they were praying for the person of righteousness, the person of God's choosing, to be elected in every elected office.

Right up until the day of the election every poll and pundit predicted the election would be a landslide for those who were opposed to the gospel. When the votes were counted, however, the results revealed a different story. In district after district those candidates and political allies who opposed the gospel had been soundly defeated. At a national level they were out of power. Needless to say the press and the pundits were stunned. No one saw it coming.

So what happened? It seems God heard the cries of His people and touched the hearts of the voters as they went into the voting booths. Some believe a corporate conviction came upon the people and they indeed voted for the person of righteous, the person of God's choosing. This was seen most dramatically in the states and regions where prayer was the most concentrated and fervent. In one of those states, laws that restricted the advance of the gospel were immediately repealed. While our situation is certainly different, Patrick believes we are at a critical crossroad. He has encouraged us to follow a similar pattern in prayer for our upcoming election.

Here's the pattern for prayer as we approach our election.

Prayer Guide for the Election Begins with Heart Preparation: Come into God's Presence with Worship. Thank God for his great mercy and many blessings. Ask God to extend his mercy to us and to our nation. Pray for the upcoming election.

1. Those running for office nationally: Instead of praying for specific candidates or political parties – Pray that the person of righteousness, the person of God's choosing, would be selected in every congressional district, every senate race and for the office of President.

"Righteousness exalts a nation but sin is a disgrace to any people." Proverbs 14:34

2. Those running for office at the state and local level: Pray that the person of righteousness, the person of God's choosing, would be selected in every elected office at the state and local levels.

" When the righteous thrive, the people rejoice; when the wicked rule, the people groan". Proverbs 29:2

3. Those voting: Pray that each person voting will be convicted to vote for the person of righteousness, the person of God's choosing, in each elected office and in each ballot initiative. Pray for God's Presence to overshadow each person as they make their decision.

"The Spirit of the Lord will be upon him – the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord – and he will delight in the fear of the Lord. He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears" Isaiah 11:2-3

4. Those involved in the election process: Pray that every official involved in the election process would serve with honesty and integrity of heart.

"The Lord abhors dishonest scales, but accurate weights are his delight." Proverbs 11:1

5. Those praying: Pray that God would empower intercessors and people across the nation and around the world to call out to Him day and night in extraordinary prayer during this season.

"And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a Spirit of grace and supplication." Zechariah 12:10

6. The Church: Pray that the Church would be fully awakened, engaged and empowered during this critical season. Pray that we would understand the urgency and importance of this election and the implications for the advancement of God's purposes in our nation and around the world.

"The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this". Isaiah 9:7

7. Our nation: Pray that God's plans and purposes for our nation would be established during this election season. Pray that we would be a nation who follows God and is a blessing to the nations of the earth.

"Your Kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven". Matthew 6:10

TIME FOR CHRISTIANS TO SERIOUSLY PRAY

As stated above, I am doing my posting on a new blog now, but I see that quite a lot of people are still coming here to this blog and so I want to post the following admonition I received today in a forwarded email from a good friend. I totally agree with these thoughts and I have been praying many times every day about this situation, but I think we cannot pray too much and I want to encourage more people to really think seriously about the situation at hand. Voting is just a few days away. I did not write this, but I wish I had.

This is ONLY for those people who believe in the power of prayer... Can we?

Will we?

I was very dismayed when, recently, a member of my Church said to me with great resignation that she was afraid Obama will take the presidency. These words came from someone that in the past has been a great prayer warrior.

What is happening was my question!! Why are we Christians settling for the loss of our Christian heritage, not issuing a battle cry and falling to our knees and taking our country back?

We allow ourselves to be stripped of the right to pray at school functions and in school, we have the Ten Commandments removed from government places and are told we cannot pray publicly or proclaim Christian principles, all the while providing public prayer places for Muslims. We allow Muslim mosques to operate in America funded by Saudi Arabia , and proclaim anti-American, anti-Christian threats and terrorism.

What in the world is going on and why are we being so apathetic? Why aren't we praying? Our God is an Almighty God who is waiting patiently for us to raise our voices to heaven to stop the tide of the anti-Christian actions in our world today.

Now we have a charismatic, albeit inexperienced, candidate for president that does not respect our flag and refuses to wear one on his lapel except when it becomes politically expedient, and whose own wife and pastor that he loves profess to have strong anti-white feelings, and

we sit back and say 'it is a given, we can do nothing' ????

There has never been a time in 2000 years that we can do nothing, never a time that we must sit back and allow the evil in men's and women's hearts to take over our world! We should be afraid, very afraid because our apathy is leading us to perdition. It is time for all Christian Americans to raise the battle cry and take our nation back!

Maybe McCain on his own cannot defeat Obama, but our God can and He will if we take to our knees in prayer and raise a mighty cry to the heavens. We have the power to change the course of this election and to keep a man as suspect as Barak Obama from leading our country to who knows where with his message of 'change'; a change which I fear will be away from our Christian ideals, and away from Christ, and further away from one nation under God to one nation under Allah.

We are great at passing stories and pictures around the internet, but where are our prayers and prayer warriors praying to stop this tide of Barak Obama? We can bring our country back to its Christian roots and stop the undermining of our country by Muslims. We can stop our country from being 'under Allah' but we must begin to pray; to pray as our country and our lives depended on it because they do. We can stop all these atrocities against God's commandments that have taken root in our country through something as simple as sincere prayer, a call to God to deliver us, to protect us from the evil that is upon us.

OK, prayer warriors, here is your challenge... Start those prayer chains. Get the spiritual power working on our behalf and stop Barak Obama the proper way, by calling on our God to save us from the deception that charismatic preaching is using to lead us on the wrong path. Stop those who would take God out of our country and our government. Raise up good men to lead us and protect us. But we should not rest on our laurels and allow ourselves to be taken further off the path of Christianity and to have God removed from our presence in our schools, courts,

government and businesses.

Invite God into the fray. Ask that His power rest upon us and give us the victory. Ask him to raise up a mighty army to defend us and to protect our country as he did in days of old. Let us be victorious beginning NOW. The battle is His but we must call on Him without ceasing and

unite our voices and hearts in prayer and fasting.

Please pass this around to all people of prayer that you know and maybe, just maybe, we'll bring a victory for us and ultimately for Him. AMEN!